Latitude 43

February Blahs

2012-02-19T09:38:00.000-05:00

It happens ever year about this time. February. This year should have been different, as there is no winter to speak of, but it happened anyway. The blahs. Something about this month, be it the weather, work, something brings us down and makes for a miserable month. Maybe it's a Northeast thing. I'm not even sure it affects everyone. Maybe it's just Rochester? We kind of lay around, read, watch some college Ball, and generally do nothing. Blaaah. We kept saying we have to do this and that, and yet here we are, near the end of the month and I can't recall a single achievement in February, except Deb making another trip around the sun! Happy Birthday to Deb!! Love ya babe :)

Well, we're starting to snap out of this February funk. We're walking every day, if it's not pouring rain, and we're starting to at least think about the boat. Today we pick up our new holding tank, and I start modifying the solar mounts, as last years hack job was not going to work. The birds are chirping, and the forecast is looking like no accumulation of white death for the next few weeks. Once we hit March, we should be home free. Any snow that falls will melt away fast.

Work has been a pain in the ass lately, and that's the excuse I have for not posting too much. GM has been working overtime to keep up with demand, and I've worked two Saturdays now since 1998. I know, I know, what the hell right? Look, I have been known throughout plant as the guy who never works the weekend, so it is shocking for me to be in there on a Saturday. Many years ago, GM stole my weekends, and that was time away from my family, and they also stopped paying us for the extra hours, and I swore I would never do it again. If I volunteer for anything it's not for the betterment of a large corporation. Besides, at my age, time is precious.

We'll visit the old barge today, see some friends, have a few laughs, then......
Get to work on getting the flock out of here!!!

Storing Food

2012-01-29T09:09:00.000-05:00

On Kelly Nicole we will have a fridge and freezer. I say will, because the old AC powered monster is toast, and the new Sea Frost units are going in. The fridge and freezer compartments are very deep, and can hold quite a bit, but I keep thinking about all the stuff we had in the fridge last year, and the surprises I found when cleaning it out. I could have swore I had one more Dead Guy Ale left, and I did, it was rolling around in the bottom of the fridge, about 1.5 arms length away, but you would have to get through everything else first. The box really needs to better organized, or better yet, reduced in volume.

So, how much really needs to be refrigerated? Surely condiments do not need to be in there. I've been to enough burger joints to know ketchup and mustard can remain on the tables, but what about other items? It would really be nice if I didn't have to remove everything first, to get at a cold beer at the bottom of the fridge. Deb made it easier by putting baskets in there, with handles, but you still have to pull at least half the stuff out. Do we need all that in there?

Coincidentally, while thinking about the fridge work, I saw this, theboatgalley.com on my Facebook news feed, and my daughter posted a cool article too.

Think how funny it would be to see carrots and onions sticking out of sand around the boat. Still, this makes you think about food storage, and if you really need to use all those amp hours for storing food.

Being vegetarians (don't hold it against us), we don't have to worry about storing animal parts in the fridge or freezer, and we prefer soy milk over cows milk, but we still like cheese and eggs. So there will be a need for a fridge, besides beer. Freezer, I'm not so sure of. I suppose when we are totally broke, and the only thing left is rice and beans, we could go for some mahi mahi, or lobster, if I can catch any. Deb would have a real problem with this, as she never ate seafood, but I'm sure I would if I had too.

This will not be a problem.

I always catch some flak for being veg, but it doesn't bother me anymore. Neither does my stomach, which was a serious issue for me in my carnivore days. For me it worked, and I've never felt better. We don't preach, we don't care what you eat. You can cook a steak and eat it in front of us, eat it raw for all I care, we do not let it bother us. To each his own, except for when my brother-in-law waves a dripping steak in my face, that can get annoying :)

So, I will think about what our food storage needs are going to look like this year, and I have to really get going on this fridge/freezer install. The problem right now, is the freezer I live in. I really should not complain about the winter so far. It's the end of January, and we've hardly had any snow, and no deep freeze so far. February is usually the shut-in month, as it's too damn cold to venture out, but so far it looks to be an early spring.

Cheers!

Fortune

2012-01-25T07:03:00.001-05:00

Found this in a fortune cookie. Two weeks in a row.

Might be a sign. Deb, what do you think?

Cabin Fever

2012-01-18T19:59:00.000-05:00

We don't live in a cabin, but we do live in a second floor apartment in a one hundred year old house. Our living space is not too much bigger than our boat (exaggeration), and in the winter months we get a little, how would you say...CRAZY! We desperately need to get outside and do something. The weather has been unfavorable for us wimps to venture out in, and Deb has just got over a cold, which she gave to me, so now I'm one with the couch for a bit. I'm not feeling too awful, so I think tomorrow we should go out and mingle with the masses, and maybe grab a bite, and a pint, and spread some germs.

Yesterday we hit 72 mph in wind gusts, but I'm hoping the boat only saw 35. My cover is not in the best of shape right now, and I still have over two months of potential white death falling from the sky. I will pay the frozen gal a visit again this weekend, and probably bring a smaller tarp with me, to cover up the expected torn area. Ugh, how many days left to cruise? Oh, check out the count down clock on the right. That's right baby, 500 days! Fingers crossed!

Here are some photos of the frozen wasteland (no exaggeration) I live in.

My pathetic looking tarp. Why is Don's boat always covered so perfectly? 'Cause he's an obsessive compulsive?

Sodus Bay, frozen, but not very solid yet.

Lake Ontario. No, it does not freeze over. No, you can not see Canada.

Well, let's hope we get over our fever, and start focusing on the near future, as we have plenty of work to do. If we stay busy with simplifying, and preparing, maybe we'll avoid the winter insanity that will surely come with the lake affect storms.

Cheers!

Crazy weather around here

2012-01-15T10:17:00.000-05:00

The sun is shining this morning, and the air is still, and it's friggin 9 degrees outside! I was going to go for a walk, but by the time I got all the gear on, I would be too tired to go :)
Tuesday the high will be near fifty. What the hell. Usually at this point we are frozen solid until about March. Tomorrow is supposed to rain all day, and I have to go check on the jack stands to see if they're loose, especially with all the freezing and thawing going on.

Some more photos of Bermuda.

Good place to swim

Death ride. Seriously, I hit a bus :(

They heard we were in town, and had a parade.

Oy

2012-01-14T10:10:00.002-05:00

Deb reminded me that her Mom reads the blog from time to time, and my last post contained some "unnecessary use of foul language". My apologies. I will use abbreviations from now on, so here are some examples so you know what I'm saying/thinking without actually reading it:

fu*k, f^&king, Fa King, Fk me!, frakking bullsh!t, WTF, fking Frenadians, frak you, you wine sipping....

I think there are more, but that should suffice.

Had a sailing dream last night, but I was on our old Hunter, Whisper III. Sometimes I wonder if the old gal may have been suitable for ocean voyages, with a few upgrades to make her blue water ready. Then I remember the Hunter 34 we saw in Bermuda.

No Fa King way!

Long Weekend

2012-01-12T07:25:00.001-05:00

Got a long weekend coming up, and I might head out to the boat if the weather is cooperative, and my van is not revolting too much. It's been in the 40's this week, but the temps are dropping into the 20's for the weekend. I notice a few folks around work that have been climate change deniers, are now strangely silent about the topic. Sunny and near 50 degrees in January has some affect I guess. I'm keeping my mouth shut, as some subjects around here get people yelling, and all red faced. For a large group of GM engineers, you would think that the data itself would be enough evidence, but some people need it to slap them in the face I guess. Me, I'm a bit nervous about all this change, and I want to get out there and enjoy nature while I can.

We ordered the new holding tank for the aft cabin. We'll be able to carry an extra thirty gallons of crap around the lake this year, which is a less than the forward holding tank, and a lot less than the crap I'm usually spreading around the marina. This spring, the forward holding tank, which used to be a fresh water tank, is being removed by some poor bastard from the yacht works across the street. A bit pricey to have done, but I will make it a point to see the look on the guys face when he's hauling the pieces of smelly tank out of the v-berth, just to make me feel better about the bill. I have a feeling that this is a job worth farming out. When completed, this will give us 60 gallons of waste storage, which should be OK, if we cut back on the fiber.

I had to give a tour of our department to some young engineering students yesterday. I could see by the look on their faces, that they weren't too excited about another old man showing them how it used to be done. So, I made it a little more interesting, by pointing out some of the "less than perfect" (screw ups) engineering we've done over the years, mixed in with some things we like to brag about. This brought a smile to their faces, but a slight frown to the HR rep. that was with them. Oh well.

I notice sailors tend to talk about how they really screwed a job up, and not so much bragging about how perfect a job went. This is good, especially for the new folks, trying to care for an aging sailboat. This is different from a homeowner talking about a job they did on the house. I don't know how many times I hear "Well, they way I did it, blah, blah, blah", and they explain every little detail of the job. Boring. You tend to tune that person out, but if they're talking about how they really fucked things up, then it's got your attention, because number one, it's fun to laugh at someone Else's screw ups, and number two, you don't want to do the same thing. So, this spring, when I tell you how I fucked up trying to seal the ports again, or how the holding tank removal made the boat smell like shit for a month, I'm sure I'll have your attention.

A good water based bottom paint?

2012-01-10T06:14:00.000-05:00

Well, this is interesting. A water based bottom paint that out performed all other solvent based paints. We just have to wait for EPA approval to get our hands on this stuff. Latitude 38 - 'bottom paint' I currently have some West Marine ablative stuff, CPP Plus I think. Works well up here, but in these cold waters, you really do not need much. I will have to consider something better when bugging out of NY. I'll look at the survey on SSCA and see what folks are using.

Proactive

2012-01-09T10:41:00.001-05:00

I know I shouldn't complain, with so many folks out of work, but a couple 20 hr days, and a Saturday of work and I'm trashed. Big problems in getting emissions systems ready for the Chevy Colorado, because of a Windows 3.1 system failure. Yes, Windows 3.1. Actually it was the hard drive that pretty much died of natural causes, and this prevented a plastic welding machine from running, which in turn shut down the whole process. I had to get in the WayBack machine, to 1994, and try to remember how to get a new hard drive back in the system. Not as easy as it sounds. Everntually we did it, finding all the drivers required, and we did not stop a production line, which was a real crowd pleaser. Why such an old machine? Well, it's kind of an out of site, out of mind kind of thing. The machine just kind of ran without a problem for many years, so it went incognito. When I got to it Thursday morning, I was shocked to see the old Windows 3.1, or DOS. We probably should have been proactive and replaced these units years ago. Even if the managers refused to spend the money, I would still have the "I told you so" e-mail. More importantly, had I been alert to the signs of an aging machine. I would have prevented the long stressful hours under pressure, and the loss of a nice weekend. They are precious you know.

This makes me wonder what I have on the boat that is going to go belly up when I need it the most. I have a feeling my inverter/charger is on the way out, as it was a little uncooperative last summer, and I had to use the backup charger. My Alternator/ regulator is kind of funky, and I keep shredding belts from time to time. Maybe I should give everything a good once over, like engine hoses, wiring, water heater, plumbing, etc. Every year I really give the engine a lot of attention, and other systems a glance. Might be time to take a closer look at everything, and replace some critical items, that at first glance look fine, but are up there in age. My steering system cables come to mind, as well as the standing rigging, which is probably the original. There are a couple of seacocks that are original too. Might be a busy spring.

Frakking cold!

2012-01-04T06:23:00.001-05:00

Seven degrees this morning. This sucks.

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T09:09:00.004-05:00

Best wishes for a great 2012 everyone. Might be a rough ride, but stay positive, and keep sailing!

Winter Solstice

2011-12-21T16:35:00.002-05:00

Happy Winter Solstice to all my friends and family! We'll be sailing before you know it.
OK, maybe not real soon, but hey, the days are getting longer from here on out. And for all you lucky bastards that are already out there, have one for me :)
Cheers!

A little Bermuda

2011-12-20T18:48:00.003-05:00

Buzz cut

2011-12-19T20:30:00.000-05:00

I put off a haircut for a while now, and I was starting to look like some of my early eighties photos. Not something I would like the world to see, so I got out of work on time today, and went over to the barbershop I usually go to. One guy had a customer, and the other was asleep in one of the chairs. These guys are thirty somethings with tattoos, and thick glasses, and attitude. I usually get my hair cut by one of the two females there, but coming in through the door, I woke up the sleeping tattoo nerd, and he grudgingly got to a chair and waved me over. For me, barbers are like dentists. I go because I have to. Not because I want to. Since I was a kid I never liked getting the hairs trimmed. Now maybe when I'm floating around on a boat, I can go for that puffy Afro like fuzzball that develops on my head after a while, but having a job and all, requires me to visit the guy with the dog clippers and sharp scissors every three months.
Now, I don't know if this Hanson Brother gets up grouchy from a nap, or if I pissed him off for some reason, but the way he tore into my head, I felt like I was getting skinned.
I said not too short, but that didn't mean a damn thing to this guy. I look like I joined up and I'm shipping out tomorrow. My God. Hard to stop someone after the first run of the clipper through all that hair. I look like I did when I was about seven years old, only with grey hair and wrinkles.

Well, on the bright side, I will not have to get a haircut until spring.

So, while cruising, how do you folks get your hair cut? Any barbers on the islands? Any cruising stylists out there? May want a mullet some day.

Paranoid?

2011-12-14T07:42:00.001-05:00

You ever have the feeling that something big is about to happen? Like maybe some big pile of crap is about to hit the fan? This confusion in the Euro zone about what to do, now that none of them but Germany has any real wealth, and our banks passing all that bad paperwork around, pretending it all has value, and our political "leaders" doing nothing but trying to trip each other up, all seems to be coming to a climax. Since 2008, this has all seemed like a bad play, put on for the masses, to keep us entertained, and hopeful until someone can figure out a happy ending. Now, a few smart people in the audience of this play are pointing out that there is no script, that the actors are making it up as they go along. The actors are now nervous, coming up with ridiculous lines that make no sense to anyone, and the audience is getting restless. They start asking for their money back, and this, is the point where the crap and fan come together.

Not sure how prepared I am for this, or if I can do anything about it, or if I'm just really paranoid. Maybe the world leaders will get together and solve all this nonsense, make new rules and abide by them, and we can all work in stable economies in peace and prosperity. Maybe I'll get a new Hinckley for Christmas.

Tarped

2011-11-25T17:47:00.001-05:00

Well, she may not be as tightly wrapped as my yard neighbor, but she's covered. Not sure if it really matters, but I feel better knowing the snow isn't sitting on the deck.

I took this angle so my pal can't see his boat. He he he.

I have some more cross framing to do to prevent the heavy snow from pushing down on the tarp. I'll do that tomorrow in the warm air. Supposed to be about 60, and partly sunny.
Deb and I got her covered in about 3 hours. We roll out the tarp in the lot, then roll it lengthwise, into a long tarp sausage. Tie a line to one end, toss the line over the boat, then haul it on deck. Last year I flaked the tarp, and that was a hell of a lot easier than trying to get it to roll off the deck. Rolling it was not a good idea, as it was quite a struggle to get that damn sausage to unroll. Lot's of heavy breathing on my part. Might have to hit the gym this winter. Don't want to die on the hard.

So, now it's officially over. I could just say goodbye, and see her again in the spring, or I can get my ass out there on weekends and get some jobs done. We'll see how much will power I have, and how much snow we get. Will be quite the boring blog if I don't get some projects going. What? It's already boring? Thanks Dear.

Next: Bermuda pics

Thankful

2011-11-25T08:07:00.001-05:00

Deb and I are thankful for friends and family that didn't want to see two old folks sit out thanksgiving in their tiny apartment. We would have been fine, and I would have whipped up something special in the galley, but it was great to be in the company of some very nice people. People we'll really get to know better in the coming months, as the wedding gets closer. So special thanks to the Spear family for a fantastic meal! Wish I was in better condition for the party, but Deb and I got a little excited about being free from work for the next four days, and maybe celebrated a wee bit too much :)

Today we think we can cover the boat, as the wind speed has diminished to about eight knots, and we have a helping hand. Kelly will attempt to help us get the 50x30 tarp over the boat. I'm sure there will be a few laughs. This is never a fun job, but it has to be done. We are really late in getting it done this year, so thankful the weather cooperated.

Bet these guys are thankful they found their skipper. I only saw one life jacket, on the bowman, until after the broach, when someone thought maybe the PFD's are a good idea, but then I see text on screen that says they all had PFD's on. They must have inflatables, under their jackets. In my many years racing, I've observed the fact that no one wants to be the first to put on a PFD. I am usually that guy, as I work the bow, but it only takes one person to put one on, and most of the others will follow. Your gut will usually tell you when it's time, and you should ignore the "looks" from the rest of the crew, or passing boats. Most of us are too old to try to look pretty on the boat anyhow.
Saw this on Sailing Anarchy.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-24T10:46:00.001-05:00

Now that's a heater

2011-11-23T12:07:00.001-05:00

I was browsing some blogs today, and apparently other people plan on keeping their boats warm this winter season. Now this is a heater. Click on the photo to see it constructed. Found the link at BoatBits.

Deb would love the tile work.

Four day weekend. What will I do? Covering the boat would probably be a good thing to accomplish. Looks like some sunshine heading our way. I could also clean out the storage unit, and get rid of some unwanted stuff.
I think we're getting closer to getting the hell out of here, so time to purge the "stuff".

Coast Guard cook rescues girl from Columbia River

2011-11-22T19:55:00.000-05:00

Lucky girl. Go Coast Guard!

Coast Guard cook rescues girl from Columbia River

Winter work

2011-11-21T18:48:00.001-05:00

Have to pull the injectors on the Yanmar this winter. Going to send them out for a tuneup. I think I have a bad one, which is causing the white smoke and fuel out the exhaust when the engine is cold. Could be wrong, but many people have agreed that the injectors is the place to start. I also have to run new fuel lines to my dual Racors. Refrigeration needs to be completed, so we can be off the grid this summer, in case we decide to head south after the wedding.
I am going to do this during some cold weather, and I'm now looking for a reasonably priced heater, that can keep the interior nice and toasty while I get some work done. Has to be under 30 amps too.

I remember one cold harsh winter day at Oak Park Marina, when I decided it was a good day to check on the boat in about 6 feet of snow. Some days you just need to get out. Anyway, I was inside the old Hunter, and I kept hearing muffled voices. I swore I was the only one stupid enough to be out there, so I checked on a few things, then went outside to check on some friends boats. As I walked down the line of tarp covered boats, the voices I heard earlier were louder. Someone was having a good time, and they were grilling too. In a Catalina with snow all around it were some friends having a grand old time partying it up, and getting ready to go out and watch the sunset! What the hell. Turns out they had a propane heater blasting hot air into the cabin, and were having some dinner and a few bottles. After a surprising hello, they said they were staying the night! OK, now that's dedication.
Not sure I want to take it to that level, but a good heat source would make all the difference.
How about this one?

Nothing like a little ambiance in the cabin. Might even get Deb to come out there with this all fired up.

This one burns coal or wood, and after an hour or so, I might be like that beaver over the pipe a few posts ago. Don't think I can get it up the ladder.

I should go with something a tad smaller, yet able to throw some heat. Here we go. Amish style. Hmmm. Where would they plug this in?

LifeSmart LS-1500 Amish Style Portable Infrared

This LifeSmart Infrared Heater is designed to heat your home without reducing humidity or oxygen, maintaining a healthy and comfortable living enviroment all while SAVING YOU UP TO 50% ON YOUR HEATING BILL! No parts to replace or costly service repairs like many other heaters, and best of all its safe for you and your family. This heater does not get hot and will not burn your children or pets. Heats up to 1200 square feet.

OK, I guess I'm settling for something like this:

No Amish styling, but it's cheap. Maybe with two of these things cooking, I might get some work done this winter. Or, I could just go with the propane salamander, sleeping bag, bottle of rum, swim shorts, flap hat, and watch the sunset over the bay. Sorry for that image :)

Bring it on.

Thoughts and prayers

2011-11-16T18:23:00.001-05:00

So sorry for fellow sailors, the Andersons.

Sail on Jan.
Her last words are here.

Both Deb and I will have a quality harness before we sail next season.
Sailing Anarchy has some words.

Safety in numbers?

2011-11-15T18:59:00.001-05:00

The NARC rally for cruisers ran into some extreme weather on their way to Bermuda. Unfortunately a life was lost, and three vessels abandoned. I have read where the organizer is blaming the weather guru they hired, and the weather guy is blaming the organizer. I had thought of going on one of these rally's at one time, thinking there is safety in numbers, and I guess that's true if you had a breakdown, or were taking on water etc., and were in relatively calm conditions. When the weather gets really bad, as it did, I imagine it's every man for himself. As much as you would want to help someone, you have to consider the safety of your own crew and vessel. Not sure how close the other boats were to helping the distressed vessels, but how could they possibly assist in those horrible conditions? There is coverage of the NARC here, and a Boat Bits has something to say about rally's.

I mentioned we went on a cruise to Bermuda, well, we were out there at the time these boats were in trouble, and I can tell you that the view from the port in our cabin was humbling. There was no way in hell I would want to be out there in that mess in anything under 200 feet long. The video from our cabin does not give you a true feel for the conditions. You really need to hear and feel the boat shudder, and this was one big ass ship. Imagine a 35-45 foot sailboat out there.

We were in 50+ knot winds, and 25 foot seas. I sat in the cabin, looking out at the sea wondering how I might react in conditions like this. Well, I better buy a really good autopilot, and some adult diapers.

We've been framed.

2011-11-13T17:03:00.001-05:00

Tomorrow, I expect there will be a cover up.

I wanted to run the engine for a while, in order to change the oil, so I went looking for a water source. Around the marina there are water spigots, that tap into a natural spring down the road. The nearest in one direction was about 300 feet away. Too far. How about the other direction?

While looking along the shoreline, I saw this:

Scared the hell out of me! I did not see it until I was pretty damn close. I stared at it for a sec, wondering if it would move. Just hanging out tryin to dry off bub. Whatchu lookin at?
Deb wanted to know if it was sleeping. Yep, I heard it snoring. They all do that about mid-day.

On the walk back to the boat, a feral cat walked up to me crying, and acting very unfriendly. Creepy times in the boatyard. We packed it up, and I'll be back tomorrow to party with the sleeping groundhog, or beaver, but I'm avoiding the attack kitty.

Good Day

2011-11-12T19:48:00.001-05:00

We got some of the framework done for the tarp. We stopped to see some friends, who had excepted delivery of our tarp, and we sat in their sun porch for the afternoon laughing the day away. As much as I wanted to get the boat all tucked away, it was equally important to visit with good friends.

We did manage to get some work done before the sun went away. We stopped for the night and had dinner at Jack's, and we saw some familiar faces, which only reminded us of all the summer fun we had. Was a good day :)

Blue to black

2011-11-12T09:40:00.001-05:00

Well, we had a great time in Bermuda, and sitting on the pink beach overlooking the bright blue water was what we needed. Now we have to start winterizing KellyNicole. She just got hauled out this week from the cold black waters, and we have to start the framework for the tarp. Fifty degrees, high winds, twenty feet off the ground, carrying boards and drills. Lovely. The joy in Deb's face means this will be a fun time :(
At least we have sun!

I have Monday off, and plan on finishing off all the winterizing duties under the cold black skies of the South Shore of Ontario. Then I will kiss the old girl goodbye for a while, but I'm hoping we get a mild winter, so I can get a few things done out there. I am really going to push myself to ignore the cold and snow, and knock off some things that need to get done so we can get the heck out of here. Can't let Mid-Life Cruising beat us to the islands :)

Ice cold delivery

2011-10-23T10:08:00.001-04:00

A friend asked me to help deliver his Sabre 34 from Sodus Bay to Rochester yesterday. What looked like a bumpy motoring for 30 miles into the wind, ended up being a dead motor, close hauled adventure through four foot waves. Not the most pleasant ride I've ever been on, but a good adventure on a nice boat. We pinched most of the way, with only one tack. As we entered the Genesee river, the wind got light, and allowed us to ghost up river, where we fired up the engine to get her into the slip.

The Westerbeke ran smooth for about a half hour after we tied up. Figures. I believe the problem to be a dirty Racor filter, but my fellow sailor had none in stock. No harm, we made it just fine, and I feel better for sailing the whole way. My toes and fingers did not share in the thrill of sailing, as it was about 45 degrees...same temperature as the water. So to thaw out completely, we booked a cruise to Bermuda!

I feel the need for pink sand, sun, and dark rum.

Anniversary

2011-10-18T06:32:00.001-04:00

Thirty years of marriage!. Where did the time go?

If it wasn't for our love of tacky wallpaper, we may never have met.

There's a few more wrinkles now, but that's from smiling all these years.

Reality

2011-10-14T06:53:00.001-04:00

I have to dis-assemble the boat this weekend, so they can haul it next week. The weather is starting to get a bit dicey, and it's quickly becoming the real October at Latitude 43. I remember putting a tarp over WhisperIII in November, and it was not fun. Deb's fingers are still recovering from that event, so I better get moving. This year I have to take off the stanchions for re-welding, as they look pretty bad, with about 4 of them that have busted weld joints. Having the stanchions off will make covering the boat easier too. Not so much framework required. So, the fun is over, and the cold weather work begins.

Here is the weather outlook for the weekend. I really picked a good one to start all this. All the pink is 40+ knots of wind. Oh yea, it's going to rain all weekend too.

We had a great time in Annapolis, and even attended the boat show for a few hours. Yes, we did not spend much time there. I don't know, I guess we were not in the mood to wait in line to see boats that were so far from our reality. I'll post about all this later, but for now, it's back to engineering, that full time gig I'm still involved in.

Annapolis

2011-10-07T14:36:00.003-04:00

Not much else to say. We are here, and we are not buying a boat, no matter how much we drink.

Reunited

2011-09-28T10:17:00.001-04:00

We have a reunion of sorts this weekend, as Nicole is bouncing up north to visit her parental units. The boy will be in tow also, so I have some entertainment to look forward to. Nothing like making boyfriends uncomfortable :)

With Kelly getting married this May, there is some wedding planning stuff happening, so the boys will find themselves in my company, while the ladies try on dresses. The weather is supposed to suck, so we may find ourselves in a bar for some time, unless the weather breaks and we get an opening for nine holes. Maybe we'll go to a shooting range. Nothing says take care of my daughters more, than a Dad firing a gun. Actually, I've only discharged a gun once in my entire life, and put a nice bruise on my shoulder, but I'm willing to try it again :)

There is a winery tour scheduled for Friday I think, and that should be fun. The Finger Lakes have some fantastic wineries, in some beautiful countryside. The suitor from Georgia would like to pick some apples, so we'll try to accommodate him. We have many cider mills up here in apple country, and there is nothing like the smell of a cider mill, while munching on some warm fry cakes. I will have to buy some apple and grape pies, and keep them for myself, as I like nothing better than warm apple pie, and vanilla ice cream. I refuse to share.

Not much about sailing until next weekend when we are in Annapolis. Looking forward to a nice relaxing weekend, walking around and looking at boats I'll never buy. We are in the market for a wind generator, and an autopilot, but I think I have settled on the W-H brand. Everything I've read says it's the best, but it's friggin expensive. Funny, it looks like something I built in electric shop in high school.

Sails down

2011-09-27T12:21:00.001-04:00

I was told I looked like a pouting kid, walking the upper deck of the marina, waiting for Debra to help flake the sail. It was pointed out to me by wifey, that the next three weekends did not involve sailing, or any other boating related activity. Damn. So, I decided, while it was sunny and dry, to take down the sails. I had thoughts of sailing in October. The crisp air. The leaves all ablaze with fall colors. Not a power boat in sight. We sailed in October once, and it was a great day. Yes, just one day. That's all we got. One stinking sunny day. The rest of the time, as I was trying to put the boat away, was freezing rain, and wet leaves stuck to me. So, with memories of frozen fingers and toes, and decaying tree matter, we took down the sails. Not happy, but what the hell, it's the price you pay for sailing this lake.

So, this lake I talk about, Ontario, is getting kind of boring. Don't get me wrong, we have had our "holy crap!" moments, and some great sails, but overall this lake is kind of a black inky void, with no real sign of anything living in it. I know there is life under the waters, but you never see it. Once, while crossing to Cobourg, I saw something long like a large snake, swirling in kind of a figure eight behind us. Of course, by the time Deb looks to see what I'm excited about, it is gone. Her reaction to any of my excitable moments, are a bit subdued. Not sure why, as I have pointed out many entertaining sights. Once, all of us witnessed a duck disappear under the water. Kind of weird, as it was floating nicely in the waves, then got sucked down by a rather large fish I guess.

Maybe this is the duck eater:

Muskrats, ducks, shrews, mice, and frogs also appear in the stomachs of muskies from time to time. Hmm. Might explain the missing Yorkie in the marina.

This guy looks nasty, and can get up to fifty pounds, and five feet long. The Sturgeon is a rare sighting, and I hope to never see one, especially while skinny dipping.

We usually see Carp, and once saw a Gar Pike along the docks. There was a Lake Trout chasing down a Sunfish right next to the boat a few weeks ago. Witnessed the demise of the sunfish right in front of me. Kind of cool seeing that. I was burning ears of corn on the grill at the time. Last weekend the Salmon were jumping in the basin of the marina. Apparently we were oblivious to the activity, but the folks at the marina thought it was something to see. Might have been that empty growler of Highland Amber Lager that made us blind to nature.

So to finish off our little marine life lecture, here is the Lake Ontario food chain. I know you were all wondering what lives in our Lake, so enjoy the nice graphic.

As you can see, there is life under the inky black waters of Lake Ontario. There are things living beyond the floating diapers, occasional underwear, party balloons, condoms, dead fish, birds, and coolers (empty of course), and the famous killer algae. For the most part, the lake is cleaner away from the major city's. The Canadian waters tend to be nicer, except for Toronto, which was not as bad as I imagined, but still kind of murky. Cobourg has a beautiful shoreline, and fantastic beach, but way too many Speedos, and Frenadians wearing them. Kingston is just fine all around, and is probably the city I will miss most. The Thousand Islands? Quite honestly, they are islands that kind of all look the same. Most are private, and you'll never step ashore, so no big loss there. Most of the time up there, you are motoring around rocks and ledges, looking for that great anchorage occupied by French speaking, nearly naked rude people, who can't anchor for shit.

We will not miss Lake Ontario. I think we spent enough time here. We need to go where there are things that can swallow you whole, or take a good bite out of you, lurking under the water. Jumping in the waters to clear a fouled prop, and wondering if you'll be the next morsel, will not be boring at all. Hopefully there will still be some speedo wearing folks, dropping all their rode into a nice neat pile, and grabbing a glass of wine to enjoy the closeness of the American Morgan behind them.

Running out of time

2011-09-12T06:50:00.000-04:00

Fall is quickly approaching. I have not heard the dreaded travel lift yet, but quite a few boats have their sails removed, and are ready for the haul out. A quick count of cars in the parking lot this morning only revealed seven, so we are down to approximately seven live-aboard's at this point. We have an eighty degree day today, then this week a cold front moves in, and the high will struggle to reach sixty. Deb is very tuned to the weather, and I'm thinking that getting up at 4:45 AM to walk to the showers is not in her plans, when it's about 45 degrees. I might last a little longer, and get some stuff removed and organized for the winter months. Could this winter in Rochester NY be the last?

The solar panels have been doing a great job keeping the batt's charged, and the davits work great. So, at the boat show, I will be scoping out wind generators, alternator/regulators, windlass, and LED lighting. I will also be scoping out the Middleton tavern, McGarvey's, and the Rams Head :)

Had some fun Saturday

2011-09-11T17:14:00.001-04:00

Chill

2011-09-05T09:12:00.000-04:00

Happy Labor day! Having a hot cup of Earl Grey, and reading through the news. Was like throwing a switch on the weather here in Western NY, as yesterday was hot and muggy, now today is cold and wet. Nothing like the first sign, you are soon to be freezing your asses off for the next eight months. Deb is still in bed, where it is warm.

Got a little aggravated last night when the rain started. We had another leak, above all of Deb's stuff. I got the heavy sigh, and the frantic movement of all her stuff to the salon. How depressing this was. These ports are driving me insane. I was standing in the dark, in the galley, caulking gun in one hand, flashlight in the other, waiting for the rain to stop. I exited the canvas in the lightning flashing, cold wet evening, and applied 4200 around the trim ring of the port as a temporary stop gap. I had to act fast. Deb eventually came out looking around with another flashlight, and offered to hold a light for me, but I turned down the offer (mistake), and finished the job. I was asleep when this flood started, and I get kind of cranky being stirred awake, so I wanted to get this over with. I was also feeling a tad sorry for myself too. The boat chores are piling up, and time is running out. Soon there will be another tarp covering this ship, and snow all around her. The burden of everything that goes wrong with the boat seems to fall on my shoulders, like I'm solely responsible for the design and install of everything aboard, including whatever stupid thing the previous owner, or builder did. I know somewhere there are these mystical guys who repair and handcraft everything, and anything on their boats, and they do it all on a weeknight, so the wife can relax and read in the sunshine all weekend. I'm not one of those guys. Most of this work takes longer than expected, requires a tool you don't have, requires four hands, and perfect weather. I can Macgyver my way out of most problems, but I'm not a craftsman. Some problems take time, patience, and practice to correct and improve. I can do it, eventually, given enough time, and trials.

Do other couples share boat maintenance duties? I do all of the maintenance, and most of the cleaning of the exterior, the cooking, and 90% of the new installations. Deb cleans the interior, except for the workshop, and engine room, and cleans up after dinner. She also organizes food storage. I don't know, maybe I'm looking for a 50/50 on everything, but is that possible? We all have our skill sets, but some of this stuff is just effort, with little training, and some interest in what the problem/solution is. Can the Captain make a duty list, or is that a really bad idea?

On a positive note, the solar panels are doing their job, keeping the batteries topped, and they didn't move at all in the heavy air we had from Irene. A successful project. Ahhh.

Might be a good day for the iPod, listen to some boat cleaning tunes, while I wash away all the spiders from the deck. Sometimes just cleaning the boat can make you feel better about her. She doesn't look so leaky, when she is clean.

Like the season, it's time to chill.

Irene

2011-08-27T20:45:00.002-04:00

We took advantage of some Irene generated winds today, and had us a great sail. Almost felt guilty reaching in 13 knots, when our blogging friends, and many cruisers are trying to survive this storm. We hope y'all find a great hurricane hole, and come out safe and sound.

We expect over 40 knots tomorrow, as the edge of Irene winds hit Lake Ontario.

Leaks

2011-08-21T10:10:00.000-04:00

In our aft cabin, I re-bed some ports, and I used Butyl tape for the sealant. I read somewhere, where this stuff is absolutely the best to use as a sealant. I had a hard time working this stuff into the seam around the ports, but I managed. Took a while. The first rainfall things looked good. The second heavy rainfall things looked like a small stream. So, removing the leaky port, and re-bedding with caulk, the old fashioned way, should do it. Nope. I used Life Caulk brand, as the marina store was out of the 3M stuff.

Never again

So I now spread this stuff, that I have never used before, around the ports. First rain, and the stream was in full force again, only this time it was actually kind of a soothing sound as it trickled onto my clothes in the cabinet below. I just sat there watching, mesmerized at the fact that I had pulled the ports twice already, and they still leak. Pulling the god damn port one more time revealed that the Life Caulk I used had dried and shrunk to half it's size in less than a week, and some of it was still tacky! Never again will I use that crap!

So yesterday, a hot sunny day with no wind, gave me the opportunity to re-bed (how many times?) again with the 3M goo. I pulled the remaining port with the Butyl tape, and it was like pulling taffy on a hundred degree day with a slight wind. In other words, the Butyl just strung out all over me and everything else and blew around in the breeze. Damn, I hate that stuff! So after three ports removed, cleaned with Acetone, and replaced, I was ready for this mornings storms.

Butyl tape

I'm 2-1. I have one above Deb's cabinet now, that leaks bad, only it's not coming in around the port, it's running above the headliner, and raining down the hull interior. WTF!!!!!!!! This is literally killing me.
I can't tell you how perfect I was in applying the goo. Why is it leaking???

After the next blob of showers, it will be ripped out, and replaced with Gorilla tape until I get another sunny day. Is it too early to start drinking?

Oh yea, my wet clothes? I put them in the car to get them out of the way. Four days later, I smelled something bad. Yep. We had to wash them twice to get rid of the funky odor emanating from my shirts and shorts. They smelled like a guy downtown, that I gave some spare change to.

Can a root vegetable end a relationship?

2011-08-20T09:21:00.002-04:00

Yum. Click on the photo for recipes.

Can a root vegetable end a relationship? Probably not, but it can get you some serious alone time. The reasons for this follow this little story.

Back when I was just a little lad in Buffalo, my Grandfather would call me downstairs on Saturday mornings after his trip to the public market. Grandpa would have me sit down at the kitchen table with him to look over his selection of produce, and other gross things he purchased. The guy ate everything, so it would be common to see pigs feet, rabbit, head cheese, etc. on the counter. One item he loved to snack on were radishes. Apparently I got that gene too, as I love me some radishes. At least he didn't pass down the hair loss gene.

Preparing radishes was serious business. It called for a sharp knife, vinegar, oil, pepper, and a can of Schlitz beer. We had red and white radishes, but the white were the best. With a sharp knife, Gramps would trim the stems, and then rotate the radish under the knife, creating a spiral cut, but never cutting through. When done, he would soak the radishes in vinegar and oil and pepper for the day, until they got a little soft. When ready, you could grab a radish and it would extend like a loose spring, with the marinade absorbed. A little pepper, a Schlitz, a shot of whiskey, and a spearing of Limburger cheese and life was as good as it got back then. We would dangle those radishes over our mouths, before dropping them in, and just munch away until Grandma chased me out of the house.

Yes, he let me have some beer, and maybe a finger dip into the whiskey. Might be why I fell asleep in the driveway the one afternoon, only to wake up with ants crawling all over my body. My screams only brought on more terror, as my Grandfather nailed me with the garden hose to wash off the ants.

To this day, I will spy some radishes in the market, and much to Deb's dismay, will prepare them for a Saturday afternoon of munching. Now I assume everyone knows what radishes do to you. First off it's the radish burps, which I hear are like living next to a treatment plant, then there is the, well, let's say venting, which would be like working in the treatment plant.
The boat is a small place, and rather cozy at times. Having a radish processing plant inside the thing can make SOME people cringe in disgust. Well, I try to schedule the radish feast at the proper time, like when Deb is not on the boat, but sometimes I just can't resist. Some people when they are stressed, eat chocolate, or ice cream, because it makes them feel good. For me it's radishes. Not only do they taste good to me, but they bring back memories of a time when I had no idea what stress was, if you don't count getting eaten by ants and receiving water torture.

Yes, today is radish day :)

Dorks on the water

2011-08-13T10:05:00.004-04:00

Debra had her work pals (Electrical Engineers) out for a sail yesterday. We had very little wind, but managed to make some tracks on a beautiful day. The boys put a big dent in the beer supply, and had some laughs, so good times all around.

As far as toxic water goes, it looks like the killer algae only made a brief appearance, but I'm waiting for another week before my ass touches that water. The sunfish is still waiting to get back in the water. I bet there are a million spiders under that hull.

Received the rest of my cable for the solar panels, so we should be getting that project done this weekend. Had a great time with friends on Thursday night at Jacks. Maybe a little too much fun, as it was a tough morning at work on Friday. I had a half day, which means I leave at 10 AM, but every manager in the place wanted something done before I leave. They do this to me all the time, so this time, I excused myself to go to the bathroom, and proceeded to walk out the back door. Wonder how many stalls they searched before they realized I bailed. The cell phone listed quite a few missed calls. Yes, I will pay for that stunt, but I'm offsite in training all next week, so maybe the anger will fade. I was to the point of breaking yesterday, but the sane voice inside me said it wasn't worth it. "Dude, just walk away". So I did. Then I heard, "Dude, grab a beer!", but I had to be Captain, responsible for 12 nerds, so I watched over the party, and had a cold one when we were tied off for the day. All in all, it was a good day, even with spending the first four hours with asshole managers.

It's back

2011-08-07T11:21:00.001-04:00

Toxic Algae is back in Sodus Bay. Damn, I thought it was not going to pop up this year, but last week I told Deb it smelled like it was back, even though we could not see it. This morning there was the spilled paint look of the blue green slime floating around some of the docks. I just got the sunfish gear out here too, but I'll be damned if I'm going to get any of that crap on me.

No wind today, only dark skies, and occasional rain. Once in a while the sun comes out to steam us. Looks like a project day, with a few Gin and Tonics thrown in.

Sweaty in Sodus Point.

Broadband boat

2011-08-03T21:29:00.002-04:00

We finally got some fast internet access. The WiFi at the marina is horrible, and we like to skype with Nicole in Savannah. I need to lay my eyes on my beautiful girl.

So some photo uploads should be coming soon. I will also document my fridge install, as that should be good for a few laughs. The solar panels took two days, and I'm still trying to over engineer the mounting system. Planning is everything, so I thought, but when all the stuff shows up, and you get a feel for the size and weight, you start making changes. The woman at the marina store thought I was crazy buying all those nuts and bolts. I must have made 5 trips back and forth, each time with more sweat coming off me every visit. The conversation got shorter too.

Tip: Never, ever use lock nuts! They seize up, call it galling, or whatever. I have one I have to cut off as it is going nowhere.

Tonight was laundry night, so not much going on. Rain is pouring down, and it's about 65 degrees. Heading over to Jacks for a few bev's with friends tomorrow.

Blame it on the flies

2011-07-29T20:21:00.001-04:00

Tuesday morning we woke up to showers in Whitby. The night before we had ventured out on our bikes to explore the town, but we found the area not too bike friendly, so we hit the market, and the only "restaurant" nearby. The hockey complex across the street from the marina had a bar, and a not too extensive menu. We had breakfast, which actually was OK, and it hit the spot. Hockey players like an all day breakfast. Of course the hot sauce I got for my eggs, was not tobasco, but wing sauce :( I suffer so. They did have Moosehead lager on tap, so life was bearable for the moment.
Whitby may be completely boring, but the people there are great, as were all the Canadians we met. The marina is pretty nice too, with excellent staff. I suppose if we had gone into town a few miles away, we would have another opinion on the place, but around the marina, there is pretty much nothing to see or do, unless you brought your hockey gear.

So here we are, looking at the radar. We saw a pretty clear day ahead, after the squall passes, and the NOAA forecast called for 12-18 kts out of the west/northwest, which would be an OK ride. Waves, 2-4 ft. Not bad.
Sailflow had the wind out of the west building to 25 kts, with gusts 30 or more. Hmmm, not good. Who do you believe? NOAA had the wind dropping as the evening came, and sailflow had it continuing all night.
Looking at the rest of the week, there was little wind, and or rain. That means motoring, or motor sailing with biting flies, and possible thunderstorms. My gut feel before we untied was to stay put, based on all the orange I saw on the sailflow map, and Deb felt the same way, yet neither of us expressed this to each other, so we left at 8 am.

We had 96 miles to travel, and what little wind we had was directly behind us, so we motored in the sun and the flat water. As the hours passed, the wind started to increase slightly. There was enough to get the genny out, while still motoring, as we needed to make good time to get in before dark. I was relaxed, steering with my feet, enjoying the ride. "These waves getting bigger?" I asked Debra. A look of indifference came back to me, as she was resigned to motor all the way. Could be worse, I guess. Deb was in another world I guess.

As the wind slowly picked up, and the waves increased, we gained more speed, and I was a pretty happy camper, as we were going to get in at about dusk. By the time we got mid lake, the waves were about four feet, and the wind was hitting twenty. Still, not a bad ride, as we started to surf some of the waves. Even more time shaved off the journey. Deb was feeling a tad queasy, so she applied the oil behind the ears, and stared out the back of the boat, watching the waves roll in. Rochester was in the distance, and I thought maybe we should tuck in there for a night, but Deb thought we'd come this far, might as well carry on. OK, let's do it.

The wind was still on our ass, but was slowly dropping, then increasing, then dropping again. I figured this was a sign of it tapering off. I was wrong. What happened next turned our trip into an adventure.
The wind started increasing rapidly, gusting to twenty, twenty five, then it actually hit thirty a couple times. The waves went from two to four, to four to six. We started surfing down every other wave, and were still managing things OK. We surfed like this for the rest of the trip, with the waves getting bigger and bigger, which makes sense because of the long fetch of the lake, and the wind directly out of the west. As the day rolled on Deb applied more Motion Ease, and I fought the wheel trying to stay with the waves, and not get rolled sideways. We started averaging about 7.5 knots, and I still thought we were doing fine. What I did not think about, was the sea floor rising up as we neared Sodus Point.
We were in about four hundred feet of water, and as we got closer to Sodus, the sea floor rose up and so did the waves! We were now looking at ten or eleven footers on our tail, and the wind howling at over twenty five knots. Deb was pretty scared, as was I, as we sat at the top of some of these waves, looking down into the trough as the boat ripped through the water. At one point we hit ten knots while surfing. I was having fun in some respects, but awfully scared too. Now, I know we should have slowed the boat down, and I eventually did, but for now I wanted to get in before dark, as I feared the waves and wind were going to lay us down as we turned into the channel. The closer we got to the entrance, the higher the waves got, as we were now in thirty feet of water. I alerted the Coast Guard of our situation, in case we got pushed into the pier, missed the channel or the boat got knocked down. They stayed with us on the radio, and if anything, they could get a boat there to pluck our bodies out of the water. The local station was closed. Nobody home. I guess we have enough money for 100 or so border patrol agents to keep those pesky Canadians away, but not enough for the Coast Guard station to stay open at night.

The sun setting behind us, Deb calling out the big waves, we angled towards the entrance, mindful of the waves, and as darkness fell around us we throttled down. Now the waves were rolling under us, and we pushed for the entrance. As luck would have it, the waves near the entrance shifted, and they were now pushing us in. I released the genny, while Deb steered with the waves. I struggled to furl the headsail, while Deb did a fantastic job of steering us into the channel. Safety! We got into Sodus Bay, into the slip, tied off, then Deb went and kissed the ground. I wanted to pump my fist in the air, and yell Wahooo!, but I just hugged Deb instead :)

In hindsight, if your gut tells you not to go, don't! The boat was fine, she handled well. Should I have been surfing? As long as I felt we had control, I thought we were OK riding some waves, but as we neared shore, and got into the shallows with the big waves, I should have slowed it down earlier than I did. There really was no rush to get in before dark, as it was our home port, and we know it well. Deb and I should have expressed our reservations about leaving port. We were not honest with each other. I think we were safe the whole ride, until the last ten miles. I should have realized the waves were going to increase as we got closer. Conflicting reports did not help the situation, and I guess you always base your decision on the bad report. Had I believed in sailflow at the time, I would not have ventured out, but they have been wrong before. Lake Ontario is famous for it's quick changing of conditions, and I should have also considered this.
All in all I think we did OK, and we are probably better for the experience. The Great Lakes can be nasty at times, and we should have respect for the power that can be generated so quickly. To be perfectly honest with you, I blame it on the damn flies. Just the thought of those bastards eating us alive all the way across the lake on a light air ride was enough to make us roll the dice.

I missed a beautiful sunset photo too. I was not taking my hands off that wheel.
We'll have more photos later, when I get a real internet connection. Wireless in Canada was slow, and the marina here at home is pathetic. We're getting a broadband hookup at the slip. Oh yea.

Sitting pretty in Toronto Island Marina

View from Centre Island

Been a lovely cruise, even with the waves.

Good times.

In Toronto eh

2011-07-22T20:51:00.001-04:00

Made it to the big city on the lake. The Toronto Island Marina is not like the brochure, but it will do just fine. I'll post pics later, but if you could see where I am docked, you would wonder how in the hell I am going to get out of there. Well, I'm wondering too! I guess that's what's fun about cruising, it's always a challenge. If it was the same old same old, then you might as well sit on the couch. I say that now, but if I'm playing bumper boats in Canada later, I might be wishing I was on the couch.
I wish i had pictures of the entrance to the docks, but I was too busy trying not to crap my pants. The entrance is a canal, and it's marked with some little buoys, and from the harbor, they look they are marking the entrance to a forest trail. You head right for the trees, get through the markers, and make a left. The depth read 5 feet, and I was swearing I'll strangle the kid that told me there was enough water in there, when a sailboat came the other way, and Deb asked how deep the water was in there. The guy said 12 feet, and he drew 7, and he made it. OK, away we go. So the docks are nice, but man is it tight in there.

So the trip from Cobourg was slowed a little by another dirty racor filter, but i swapped it out pretty quickly, and we motor sailed here. The wind was on the nose most of the trip, but shifted enough for us to get the main up. That added about 4 knots. So here we are. We're off to see a CFL game tomorrow at the dome, then some dinner and a few cocktails :)

Good times.

Paul and Deb

Oh Canada

2011-07-21T07:04:00.002-04:00

Got to Cobourg without an incident. Hooray! We are spending a few nights here, then on to Whitby. Never been there, and never heard of anyone being there. Should be interesting. Hopefully I’ll find a nice pub, and I hope it’s better than the one we found last night. This one was located in an old hotel, and had about 4 locals in it. The kind of place, where you walk in and it gets quiet, and they all size you up. We just ordered a couple beers, and watched the Jays game. One of the old guys in shorts and black socks, pulled up with suspenders was pretty buzzed, and talked up a nice lady at the end of the bar. It was at the point where he started kissing her hand, when they decided to leave. That left Deb as the target of Mr. Socks. He looked at me, and I did not smile, so as not to put out a friendly invitation. Hope Deb appreciated that. Another patron had an old baseball uniform, which looked like it was from the 30’s all tucked into his 120 lb frame. Add a mullet haircut, and it’s not a pretty picture. Very entertaining, and harmless. Not sure Deb liked my choice of drinking establishments.

So we sailed halfway across the lake, until the wind died on us, and we had to fire up old Smokey. Took us about 11 hours to do the 67 miles. Not too bad I guess. We could have motor sailed and made it in much less, but what fun it that? When we went to start the engine, it didn’t. It sounded like a dead battery, but on the next try is fired up. When the alternator started charging, it seemed to be cranking in an awful lot of amps for only using the instruments for the last 6 hours. I’m wondering if my starter battery is crapping out. I brought along a spare battery (who does that?) and will swap it out today.

When we were motoring we had visitors……

BITIING FLIES!!

These bastards are the spawn of Satan. They will eat your flesh, and they are quick. First they send in the stupid flies. These do not bite, they just land on you and size you up. You can swat them easily while the others watch to see who has the quick hands. After this squadron gets decimated, the others descend. These little creatures from hell, attacked us the rest of the way. If you do managed to kill one, the others attack the corpse. Yes, they are cannibals as well. After we docked, they continued to bite us until we left for dinner. There are still a few around, and they only bite Deb. Based on the scouting report, she must have been the slower hand.

Had a great dinner at the Oasis, and the drinks were good too. I asked for a Tanqueray and Tonic, and I got a stare, and then “What?” It’s gin…and tonic. “I’ll be right back.” Ten minutes later. “We have Tanqueray. What do you want in it?” Oh boy. At least there was a lime in the first one.

So far, so good. Lot’s of friendly people here.

Good times.

Freighter alley. Pay attention!

Destination: Cobourg Ontario

2011-07-18T08:08:00.016-04:00

Well, we'll get there eventually.

The cruising plan is to cross the Lake to Cobourg, then bop over to Whitby, continuing to Toronto. We left Sunday morning, because the bastards that employ us, would not leave us alone the whole week before. Needless to say, we were not ready for the Saturday morning departure. Prepped all day Saturday, with some relaxation, and Sunday morning looked good for the crossing. Nice breeze from the southwest, and we would reach all the way there. As we motored out into the lake, I made my rounds down below, as I usually do, to make sure things were cool. You know, like no water coming in the boat, stuff like that. Bilge? Relatively dry. Pump work? No. Looks like a bad float switch, again. Not a problem, as I can jumper it. Instruments? Good. Engine? Looks OK, sounds OK, any fluids visible, or oil? Um, what's that pink stuff dripping on the alternator? Crap! We have a coolant leak, and a steady one at that. "Deb, turn her around".

Deb had such a nice smile going, as she was free of work, and about to have a wonderful sail across a blue lake with sunny skies. I hated to see that smile turn to concern as she spun the boat around. We killed the engine, and sailed as close as we dared, then fired the thing up again. After we tied her up, I waited for the coolant temp to come down, and then yanked the hoses. Looks like a rupture where the hose may have made contact with the engine. Damn.

My buddy Don (Tweaker) came to the rescue, with some hose. Where does he get this stuff? The other day I needed to open up a hole in some stainless, and he pulls this xmas tree looking thing out of his ass, that will widen the hole up to where you need it. Amazing. Even more amazing is the porn hits I'll get for stringing those sentences together.

We're all put back together, and running. Now I have to replace the crappy Rule brand float switch for the bilge pump. These poorly made switches only last a year or two. You really have to check them every day.

Too late in the day to cross now, so we stayed put, and met up with Kelly and Eric for lunch. We then jumped over to Abe's to watch the girls soccer team's disappointing loss to Japan. Bummer. We found our friends sitting peacefully with their Dog Izzy, so we felt obligated to ruin that nice moment by hopping aboard for a nightcap.

So the plan was to cross Monday morning, but as you can see from this radar picture, we aren't going anywhere.

The remnants of what kept us at the dock.

So, I guess we sit tight, wait out the storm, and leave tomorrow. Well, that's the plan anyway.

Fantastic week off

2011-07-10T09:42:00.001-04:00

Wow. We actually had a full week of good weather, and it happened on my vacation week! I feel blessed. OK, maybe that's going a little too far. Lucky is probably the word. Got some sailing in, some projects done, had friends over. Was a great week. About the only disappointment, is the fact I have no Tabasco for my egg sandwich I'm eating right now.

New davit cross brace. Solar mounts on the way.

Replaced with 275' of chain. I will sleep better at anchor.

Thor had to remove this one.

Future son-in-law. Graceful.

At least his shorts stayed on.

Eric and Lauren enjoying Ontario.

Thanks for the eggs Kate and Frank! I only smashed three of them on my bike ride back from the bar. The goo left quite a trail into the cockpit, and onto the cushions. At least I was smart enough to wipe it off before the morning sun hit it.

Last day of vacation. I can feel the stress bubble percolating already.

Flare up?

2011-07-04T09:14:00.001-04:00

We used last nights fireworks as an excuse to fire some off our old flares. A few of us got our pistols out to test them, and get the experience of firing them. We had clear open water in front of us. I had two shells, that fired nicely, but burned well short of the indicated time, and really did not go that high. Very disappointed in the results. Another guy fired a shell, and his gun barrel cracked in half! The shell plopped into the water in about 6 feet, and a smoking hot gun barrel, metal, was dropped from his hands. Another sailor could not get his barrel to open! These were all Orion, of various ages. Sad that you may have to rely on these things some time in the future.

There were some of those flares, where you pull the string while holding the plastic tube above your head. On both of these the string broke, and they never fired. They were also Orion.

There was one guy who sent off a parachute flare that was spectacular. Good height, and almost a minute of burn time. These were in large tubes, with a pull ring, and I think they were Hansson.

I was impressed, and will spend the extra cash on these babies. Keep in mind that these were all expired flares, and some were at least five years old. The small gauge plastic guns never worked, and a larger gauge barrel cracked in half. I had the only gun that worked, and it had a plastic barrel with a metal sleeve.

Expensive weekend

2011-07-03T09:24:00.000-04:00

No, it's not expensive because I did something stupid in boat handling. Sorry to disappoint. It's because I bought some anchor chain, and had it delivered. Did not know that you can not get chain delivered to your residence. I really have no residence, but I was going to have it delivered to a friend nearby, so that they can stare at it for a week, while I figure out how to get it to the boat. I was told that the drop-off has to have a fork truck. Franks tractor was not good enough, so I had to have it delivered to the marina, where I will pay (at $75.00/hr) to have a guy remove it from the truck, and deposit it to the front of the boat. I'm assuming the delivery will be late in the day, and I will pay overtime, and the chain will be left at least a hundred yards from the boat.

We had a glorious sail yesterday, with my daughter Kelly, and Eric. They brought along some friends, Sarah and Zach. Good people, and all had a great time. We caught some wind, around 15 knots at times, and it was sunny and 90 degrees, and wind out of the south, which means flat water! Eight knots on a reach for 23 miles. Sweet.
The only weird part of the day was when we were docking. I usually come in a tad fast, as the nose is light, and any gust pushes me around a bit, so I maintain steerage. Well, our friend Ed had a dinghy close to our path, and I yelled "get that stinkin dinghy out of our way!" Ed replied, "Oh Christ it's Paul, get the hell out of the way everybody, he's probably doing 8 knots!". Well, there was a memorial service on the dock next to us, and they were in prayer, and I didn't notice, until I saw all of these people at a dock "party" staring at us. They were not smiling. I felt pretty bad. Bad that I interrupted, and bad that I forgot about the service. I knew Captain Jim, he was a very nice guy. So, the youth in our group yelling and toasting a good sail, then pumping reggae through the boat was probably not in good taste.

Payback.

Last night I woke Deb up yelling in my sleep. I was actually kicking the side of the berth. The weirdest dream ever. I was hit by a car, while riding my bike. Nothing new there, but this time I was laying near death on the road, and no one was helping. I felt someone grab me, and say, "Sometimes plans change, let's go.". I turned to find Captain Jim pulling on me, trying to take me to where he now resides. Yikes. Hope he enjoyed the karate kicks to the groin. Good thing Deb woke me up. Then she told me I was screaming like a little girl. Well, what if a dead Captain had his boney hands trying to drag you the great beyond? Huh? Then I remembered that all the ports and hatches were open. Ugh.
I hope they were all drunk and passed out last night.

A weekend of sailing and Jazz

2011-06-19T20:57:00.000-04:00

We had light air, but we sailed! Finally we got the old barge out for a floater. We got out about 6 miles out into Ontario, and we picked up 11 knots of breeze. We sailed on all points to make sure she was trimmed, and she practically sailed herself. Sweet. Now we need some good air to make sure she's ready for the Toronto trip. No mishaps so far.

I remembered the camera this time, but noticed the memory card was missing. Damn. I hope to have some photos soon. Always nice to have pics to go along with the story. Then you can see how stupid our dinghy looks in the davits. I need to make some better straps, as they are too long, and the dinghy can't be raised high enough. We really need a smaller dinghy too, as the 11 foot zodiac is just too much, and looks enormous on the back of our boat. I had to help a friend at another marina about 4 miles south of us, and I took the dinghy instead of the car. This was fun, until I caught a wake and almost put her on her side. The bay was a tad choppy, and my ass is still hurting from the pounding. Plus I landed on the radio, which fortunately was sealed in a zip lock, for my protection.

Went to the Rochester Jazz festival on Friday to see Elvis Costello. He was great. What a talent. He rocked the Eastman for almost 3 hours without a break. His acoustic numbers were awesome. Record attendance at the festival this year. Something Rochester should be proud of. Good times.
http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20110619/LIVING/106190353

Mack Packer

2011-06-11T21:11:00.000-04:00

Spent all day getting a Mack Pack installed. I realize the mainsail is not going to fall fully flaked into a bag I can just zip up. I'm not that gullible, but I am hoping I can pound that crispy sheet of Dacron into some shape that will fit in the bag. The sail cover method doesn't work for me, especially on this boat. The boom is too high, and my legs are too short. As long as we've had this boat, I have been climbing the mast on those pop out footholds, and hugging it while I tie up the sailcover with one hand. I was an accident waiting to happen.
While at the boat show in 2009, Deb noticed this Mack Pack, or the guy standing next to it. Eight hundred dollars later, and I had some canvas and line in a box, with a CD that showed how easy it was to install. The guy in the video said it would take about two hours. Two years later, and we've got it done. We're a little slow.

Sails are on, the canvas is up, and I think we're going sailing tomorrow!

Blogging from the water

2011-06-09T06:31:00.001-04:00

Friday they put our mast up, parked her in our slip, and left her for us to clean and rig. The only reason I knew the boat was ready, was I saw from the web cam a tall mast at the end of the docks. Customer relations, a concept untested in many places.

Spent Friday night under the stars, on a clear and cool night, thinking how an un-rigged, cluttered, dirty boat, can make all the stress of the week just melt away. It's good to be back.

Still waiting

2011-06-02T21:17:00.001-04:00

I know some of you are asking why we even bother with sailing up here, as most of y'all have been sailing for at least a month by now. I'm really not sure anymore. This is the worst it's been for us, in a while. We are still waiting for the mast to be raised, and it will at least be another week before we actually get her out sailing. The wind was too strong the last two days to get the mast up. So, what's next? Too sunny, Hang nail, Forgot my sunscreen, Got the hiccups? This is getting absurd.

Might be time to blow out of here.

Stickless

2011-05-31T21:40:00.000-04:00

We are floating! About friggin time eh!
So, the marina has this list. You call when your boat is ready, and they assign you a number. When it's your turn, you get launched. Sounds simple enough. So we signed up. Never thought to ask what the number was. I tell my buddy that we have signed up for launch. He also signs up for launch 3 days later. So here we are Memorial day weekend and they tell us we will be in AFTER the weekend. That was a real bummer, but no problem mon, we find something else to do. We stop by the boat last Friday, and find my buddy sitting in his slip all nice and rigged, and getting ready for the weekend. WHAT THE F...!!!

So we decided to head out to Sackett's Harbor and ride the bikes around town, and enjoy the day, and sample some micro brews. Very nice. We had a great time, and we forgot about getting screwed over.

After stewing about it all day today, I had someone check the secret launch book ( I have connections), and it looks like I was number 126, and my buddy was 96. How the f%#$% does this happen?? There appears to be some shenanigans going on with the launch book. Now that I think about it, there appears to be quite the number of yacht club burgees flying in the marina. Hmmm. Maybe the Thurston Howell crowd gets priority.

I'll see to it that we are in before Memorial day Lovey Darling.

Today I call the marina, to ask why they did not respond to my e-mail. I thought I was very polite in that e-mail, just so you know. Maybe a bit sarcastic, and maybe some bitterness, but polite. I ask when we will be launched, and they say we're in the water already. Huh? Well, what do you know, a little whining and magically we are in the water. I'm starting to like this squeaky wheel method. Maybe from now on, I'll just get things done my way, yes sir. Damn straight I will. This is the new Captain Paul. He's a tough little troll, better see it his way.

"only one problem Paul, you see, our yard guy, hurt his back today, so your mast is not in. Hopefully we'll get some good news from our guy tomorrow, and get you all set up. Have a nice day!"

DOH!!

Well, my mood has been better, but...

2011-05-29T21:25:00.001-04:00

It appears that we have Prozac in our Great Lakes. You know, the place where we get our drinking water!!

When antidepressant pills get flushed down the drain, they do more than create happier sewers.
Scientists in Erie, Pennsylvania, have found that minute concentrations of fluoxetine, the active ingredient in Prozac, are killing off microbial populations in the Great Lakes.
Traces of antidepressants such as Prozac have been found in both drinking and recreational water supplies throughout the world, in quantities experts say are too dilute to affect humans but which have been found to damage the reproductive systems of mollusks and may even affect the brains of animals like fish.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/05/11052-prozac-drugs-water-great-lakes-erie/

So, knowing I am ingesting Prozac every time I quench my thirst. I decided to do a little research on the stuff. Found this little tidbit:

Sexual dysfunction is a common side effect with SSRIs. Specifically, side effects often include difficulty becoming aroused, erectile dysfunction, lack of interest in sex, and anorgasmia (inability to achieve orgasm). Genital anesthesia,^[8] loss of or decreased response to sexual stimuli, and ejaculatory anhedonia are also possible. Although usually reversible, these sexual side effects can last for months, years, or permanence after the drug has been completely withdrawn.^[9] This is known as Post SSRI Sexual Dysfunction.

Now, I know how to counter the Prozac flushings, but somehow I don't think many little blue pills will make it into our sewer systems. At least not in their original form. But if they do find Viagra in the Great Lakes, let me be the first to rename ~~Niagara~~ Viagra falls.

Too diluted to effect humans. Right. Are Viagra sales higher along the Great Lakes?

I've been to Erie Pa., and if I lived there, I would be on Prozac too.

Still waiting for our friggin marina to launch our boat. Somehow we were skipped over on the "list". Might be time to change my attitude towards marina owners. The meek will NOT inherit the earth. They will get skipped over. Bastards.

I need more tap water!

I was not raptured

2011-05-21T10:26:00.001-04:00

Well, I'm still here. Guess I'll purchase the solar panels, before the zombies take over. I should probably add a wind generator, as the sun may not be shining for a while, after all the earthquakes, and things start burning. Amazed at some people, but not surprised at how they handled the predictions of an old engineer, who calculated the end of times, and spent gobs of money advertising said prediction. I feel bad for the children of the parents who sold everything, figuring they were being raptured. How do you face your family after you find out you were wrong about all this? Probably feels the same as telling your family you bought a boat. I remember those faces clearly.

We are in Kokomo Indiana for a wedding. My daughter's college friend is getting married, and we were invited. Only an eight hour drive from Rochester, ugh. We do get to see Nicole, however briefly. Jonathan is here too, and we get to grill him for a few hours :)

The vessel is ready for launch, as I took Thursday off of work to take advantage of the sunny skies. Finally got the anchor light to work. The stupid design of the spring loaded contacts was at fault. You would push in the bulb, and twist it, and the contact post would hit the bottom of the lamp housing, rotate and not pop back up. I shimmed up the socket with a few washers, and this worked well. Oh, I also switched to an LED. Hope it's bright enough.
We always add another light, just above the deck to light us up at anchor. I figured a drunk power boater is not going to notice my little lamp, sixty feet in the air.

Well, the next post should be from the water, if all goes according to plan. Unless the end of times was slightly miscalculated, and things do start to fall apart. We'll still be on the boat, fighting the zombies.

Still on the hard

2011-05-17T07:27:00.001-04:00

Who'll stop the rain? I can't remember the last time we had such a miserable spring. It feels like november out here. We are still trying to wrap up some projects before we splash. The davits are in, but we still need to mount the rail supports. We tried last night, in between squalls, but we managed a few holes drilled before the rain and darkness moved in. Deb was shivering last night trying to assist me, and I could see in her face the question, "Can we just go south already?".

Nothing really freaks me out more than drilling holes in my boat. When that drill bit finally breaks through, it sends a chill down my spine. I guess it would be worse if I was drilling through the bottom of the boat. There are enough holes there, we don't need anymore. Trying to keep the drill bit at a 90 degree angle on the sloped transom was not easy from a ladder, which is on plywood, on top of rocks along the shore. They really did not make it easy for me to work on the barge this year.

On a positive note, our fuel polishing seems to be working, as the Yanmar fired up after bleeding the system, and ran enough to get up to temperature. Good sign, as the fuel was pretty dirty, and I had never polished fuel before. I emptied about 10 gallons from the port tank, which was overfilled, and leaking out the tank vent. Oops. I just need to add some biocide to both tanks, and, maybe some more polishing on the port side, and we're good to go.

We are scheduled for launch, sometime in the next week, so let the good times roll! Can't wait to get out of that apartment, and into some fresh air.

Getting there. Slowly

2011-05-01T09:05:00.001-04:00

We have the bases for the davits installed, finally! Only been two years. I know, what the hell. So adding the supports for the stern rail, to beef it up a bit, will take longer. I appears our measurements were off a tad two years ago. Pretty sad for two engineers, but we're electrical, not mechanical. We'll mount the davits today and supply pictures of our latest accomplishment.

Check out this post http://blog.svhelloworld.com/2011/03/what-we-learned-about-cruising.html
I like the observations on a first year of cruising.

Got the friggin davits installed. Only took two years. Kato marine probably thought we died, or got divorced, as we never called them for the cross brace measurement. We can't measure for that until the dinghy is lifted. Probably do that in the water. We then have to order the solar panels, and the wind genny.

Davits...finally installed. Not a bad job.

Work in progress. Rain be damned

2011-04-25T19:31:00.000-04:00

Sadly, I've been lazy keeping up with writing on this blog. Been a tad busy lately. I was in Detroit for a few days getting trained on Electrical Safe Work Practices. Seems they trust me to insure the safety of our electricians in the plant when working with high currents. Amazingly, for the time I've been involved in electrical work, I've only been zapped a few times, and nothing serious. I remember watching my teacher in electric shop in high school being thrown from the work bench. That was cool. Plus it made me respect what you can't see. He was OK, just a bit dazed. I got hit with an ungrounded laser capacitor once. Thank God it was not fully charged. Might explain some quirkiness though.

The Motor City was pretty cool. Rode the people mover around the city at night. Hit a casino, an Italian restaurant, and a few bars. Felt safe the whole time, and the people were great. Be nice to see Motown make it back from the brink. The people deserve it. Tip....if you're going out to dinner and it's just two guys, don't go to an Italian restaurant together. Go to a bar, where chicks and sports are visible. We were the only losers in there, and I never gave it a thought until they brought us two spoons for a desert that my fellow employee ordered. WTF.

So anyway, work has begun on KellyNicole. I feel now that it will never stop raining, and I might as well just go out there and get as much done as I can while getting wet. The marina put the ca-bash on the bottom paint removal, as they are way behind because of the rain, and some broken equipment. They also killed the tank removal from the v-berth until I can pump it out about 1 million times. Guess I can't blame them. They thought they could just lift it out and carry it out the companionway. Duh, no. If it was that easy why would I pay you three hundred dollars to do it. So sometime this spring they will cut it out. That should be fun. Wonder which one will throw up first.

Oh, happy Easter!

I'm pretty sure the bunny was female...pretty sure.

Melted

2011-04-03T18:41:00.000-04:00

Sodus Bay. View from the stern.

Had a good weekend out at the boat getting a few things done. Still pretty cold out, 40's, but we have sun. Sun is good.

She's naked!

2011-03-30T21:19:00.001-04:00

No, not Deb, the boat! Way too cold for Deb.
We went out tonight and stripped her winter clothing and she's fully exposed. So we get home and I see on the radar that we have snow coming. Ha, knew that would happen. So after the cover was thrown in the dumpster, we went over to Captain Jacks for dinner. Low and behold, they restocked the taps with some tasty brews! Scotch Ale! Oh boy, I was like a kid in a candy store, or a sailor in a beer store, or a drunk in a ...
So anyway we had dinner, and I had a Scotch Ale, and we saw some familiar faces, and felt like we were back home. Can't wait to get back to the Point for the summer. Good times.

Goodbye Winter

2011-03-21T20:26:00.001-04:00

It's Spring! Finally. I would have to say that this winter seemed longer than any in quite some time. We all seem a little annoyed with it all, and some serious cabin fever has affected some of my friends. You know who you are. It ain't over yet, as there is snow forecast for later this week, but just knowing that it's spring, makes brushing off the snow from your car, not so depressing a task as it has been.

There are some major tasks to be started this month on KellyNicole. Number one will be the removal of the giant holding tank. I say giant, because it's one hundred and thirty five gallons. Yes, 135 gallons! I could drink a twelve pack every day, and Gatorade all night, and still not pump out until the fall. Why would I remove such a luxury? Well, the tank used to be a freshwater tank, and was, for some stupid reason converted to waste by the previous owner. Now, some have said, just clean it and use it for freshwater, but I can't do that. Every time I took water from the tank, I would be looking for a slight yellow tint. No, it has to go. Besides, we need more freshwater capacity than the 80 gallons in the center tank. I plan on actually installing two tanks in that space, and another holding tank of course.

The other task is to remove the old bottom paint and put down a barrier coat. I will have the marina strip, or blast the ablative coating off the boat, and I will apply the barrier coat. I have some experience on our old 25 footer, where I sanded off the paint, and put down interprotect. Was one hell of a job, and I'm hoping all the ablative paint I inhaled doesn't catch up to me before I get a chance to get the hell out of here.That's why the marina can do it. I'll show up after the cloud is gone.

The following are other things I want to to get done this spring:

New toilets for the new holding tanks
Replace/repair the injectors
New batt's
Davits Installed
Solar panels Installed
Windlass Installed

I'm nuts right? We'll see how it goes. I do have a day job, and that always seems to get in the way of fun. However, we are running out of time. 802 days

50 and sunny! Woohoo!

2011-03-14T21:10:00.001-04:00

Heading to the marina tomorrow. Going to measure for refer lines, and locations for the new compressors. Our cover managed to stay intact, but this one is done. Too many holes. So I can feel spring in the air, and it feels great. Went for a nice long walk together around all the old mansions. Lot's of people out jogging, and walking. For a change we can walk without slipping on the ice, and freezing our lungs with the frigid air.
This is our neighbor. George Eastman, the founder of Kodak. George is dead, but his house is a nice museum. Check it out here.

Most of the old mansions are now apartments, and we live in JP Morgans nephew's old house. We actually live in his old library and servants quarters. Sounds nice, but it's actually not all that exciting. The place is definitely an old apartment, a bit beat up, and maybe a little creepy. But it's one step closer to life on a boat.

Looks like about 805 days to go :D

Finally some warmth

2011-03-06T11:46:00.000-05:00

Flew to Florida to thaw out with family and friends. Good times. Makes me wonder why we put up with the weather we have. We put up with some pretty lousy weather just to enjoy those three months of good warmth we get over the summer. Well, at least we don't have hurricanes, mud slides, fires, and tornadoes. We just have to endure the white death, and temps that can kill you if you slip and fall going to get the mail. Not too bad I guess. So, while we are here we're trying to stay outdoors as much as possible. Went on an Air Boat ride yesterday. Good times. Captain Bob was entertaining, and I think we provided our share of comic relief. Maybe a wee too much beer for a two hour air boat ride. Am I right Nicole?
http://www.captbobsairboattours.com/

Florida

2011-02-28T20:14:00.000-05:00

Heading down to Florida to see Mom. Nicole and Jon will be joining us there. We really miss seeing our daughter, and Carol. This will be a great reunion. Unfortunately we'll be inland, and not sure we'll make it to the coast, but any temperature over 30 degrees, and a little sunshine will be great. I'll have to jog around the retirement community in the mornings, and see how many folks call the cops. Well, on second thought, with all this gray hair, I'm sure I'll go unnoticed.

We are getting some steady temps over 30 degrees now, so things are starting to thaw. We can actually hear the birds in the morning, and this means that boat prep will begin shortly. I am really looking forward to getting the old tub ready to float.

Spring has unofficially arrived.
Cheers

Big fish disappearing from the ocean

2011-02-21T20:22:00.000-05:00

From Blogfish:

Big fish disappearing from the ocean

We're eating most of the big fish from the ocean and replacing them with sardines. So says a new study:

"predators like tuna, cod and swordfish have seen their numbers drop by two-thirds over the past century, while small prey fish such as herring, caplin and anchovies have doubled."

This produces a "while the cat's away, the mice will play" scenario, where the nasty, hungry big tuna and swordfish have mostly been caught, and so little fish like sardines get to play in a much more hospitable ocean

This study says "yes" in the scientific debate over whether or not people have been fishing down food webs in the ocean--catching the big fish first and producing an ocean full of small fish. There is a "no" side to this debate, with strong evidence against the idea that we're everywhere fishing down food webs.

What's a fish lover to do? It's simple really, let's let the scientists duke it out over who's right and see who's left standing. The real challenge is getting people to behave better and not catch too many of the big fish or the little fish.

I have a deep fear of whales and sharks, so I will not miss those floating monsters. Sharks are easy to explain, but whales? I don't know, they just seem vengeful, you know, for all those years of hunting them. I can see that big eye looking at me now, just before it knocks my rudder off. Fat blubbery vengeful bastards.

C'mon

2011-02-01T21:36:00.000-05:00

You would think the apocalypse was about to fall upon us, when you hear the weather reports in this town. Ooh, a foot of snow. Hope we can survive. C'mon man, it's February! It snows!
We actually have lines at the gas stations, and people have been stocking up on groceries. What could you be stocking up on, when it's supposed to be sunny on Thursday? Bread and milk, that's what they buy. I never understood that. If I was confined to a house for a couple days, because I was snowed in, the last thing I would want would be cows milk, and toast. These people should be hitting the liquor store, and renting some movies :)

Food

2011-01-25T20:45:00.000-05:00

I'm a slow food guy. No food goes through the car window, before it goes into my mouth. I'm also a messy kitchen guy, as Deb can attest to. I tend to use all the pots, pans, knives and whatever, to make even the most simple meal. I usually do all the cooking, at home, or afloat, and I worked in a kitchen when I was younger, so it's a comfortable place for me. I was always the first one home from work, so I would get things rolling. Deb and I have a deal, I cook, she cleans it up. I don't mind this, as I think cooking is really relaxing, and fun. I'm usually humming or whistling when in the galley.

When on the boat, we have to be really efficient at cooking, as we have very little room for all the stuff I usually require to make a "gourmet" meal. Its' been frustrating at times. I needed a grater, and there was just no room for something like a box grater, but I really wanted one, so Deb said she'd take care of it. I ended up with a box grater, but it was about two inches tall! Actually I do use that stupid little thing.

So, we went from a big house, to a small apartment, and in summer we squeeze down even more into a boat. The galley is small, and I have got to be more efficient in that small space so we can continue to eat well.
While poking around for a recipe on the web, I came across a site that would really apply to small galley cooking. Stonesoup 5 ingredient recipes. This is a cooking blog, with some great recipes, all using just 5 ingredients! Simplify your life, and your cooking. Check it out.

Heat wave

2011-01-25T07:01:00.001-05:00

Wow, a heat wave. I actually unzipped my jacket this morning, when I stepped out into the 28 degree weather. Amazing how good the 20's can feel. My van was feeling the heat too. I smelled burning rubber all the way to work. What is it with me and belts? We had the Yanmar throwing belts on our cruise to the islands, and have had busted belts on three cars now. All of them at the worst possible time. I wouldn't be surprised if the belt on my pants just popped some day. Might be time to ditch the Popeye The Sailor Man underwear. Just in case.

You could die

2011-01-24T06:31:00.001-05:00

-4 degrees F

Look, I'm not whining, well, maybe a little, but you could die! Now that I'm a tad older than the times I would play pond hockey in these temperatures, I think about things like falling down, breaking something, and being frozen before someone finds me. Damn I hate this! I get to work between 5:30-6am, and it's pretty lonely out here on my walk to the plant door. My eyes were watering and I thought my glasses froze to my face. It's not a good time to have a runny nose either.

If someone ever does find me laying there in the snow, frozen stiff, I hope my last act was to raise my middle finger.

Brrrrr

2011-01-22T22:49:00.000-05:00

High of 8 tomorrow :( Was going to measure the length of my refrigeration lines I'll need for the new Seafrost system, but I don't see it happening. If I fell off the boat in the lonely yard, I could be frozen solid in an hour. Hope that anti-freeze works as advertised.

Blow up dolls are NOT recognized flotation devices.

2011-01-17T16:18:00.000-05:00

From the news.
First this:
TWO bull sharks have reportedly been spotted swimming down the main street of a flooded Queensland town, 30km inland.

Butcher Steven Bateman spotted two bull sharks swimming near his Goodna shop yesterday - one of several reports of a sharks in Goodna's main street.
Ipswich local councillor Paul Tully confirmed it was a bizarre but true story out of Queensland's flood disaster.
"It would have swum several kilometres in from the river, across Evan Marginson Park and the motorway,'' Cr Tully told The Queensland Times.
"It's definitely a first for Goodna, to have a shark in the main street.
"I know Steve (Bateman) and he wouldn't say he saw a shark unless he really saw one."
The local MP Jo-Ann Miller also said she believed Mr Bateman’s sighting was genuine.

“Steve wouldn’t lie about something like that. He’s very well known in the community," she told The Queensland Times.
Bull sharks are the third most likely shark to attack a human being. They are noted for their aggressive behaviour and often swim in shallow waters along coasts and rivers.
They can tolerate fresh water and have been known travel long distances along rivers.

Then this:

UPDATE 8.34am: AS THEY worked to fight floods across the state emergency services workers had to take time out to rescue a dim-witted duo riding an inflatable doll down the Yarra River.
The man and woman, both 19, were left clinging to a fallen gum tree in the middle of the river in North Warrandyte when one of the doll's snagged on the tree and their caper went horribly wrong about 4.30pm.
An SES watercraft came to their rescue not far from Bradleys Lane about an hour later.
While it is understood the blow up doll and several other inflatable items were salvaged from the scene, the bottoms of the rescued woman's bathers were long gone down the river.
A blanket was required to protect her modesty as she exited the water.
Police said this morning the pair had just floated by the Pound Bend Tunnel when the water became turbulent and the women lost her grip on the doll and grabbed hold of the floating tree.

Sen-Constable Wayne Wilson said a passer-by heard the pair's calls, and called triple zero.
A kayaker took life jackets to the distressed pair, before the SES managed to get an inflatable boat to the scene.
Sen-Constable Wilson said the pair did not need medical help.
The incident led police to warn that blow-up dolls were not recognised floatation devices.

I guess they didn't hear about the sharks in town. What I want to know is...what position is best for using a doll as a flotation device? Should I keep spares on board?

Negative

2011-01-17T08:39:00.001-05:00

Seriously? I get a day off with sunshine, and it's -6 degrees F. What the hell.
I was heading out to the boat today to check things out, and maybe mess around in there, but not now! I'd be a Popsicle in 10 minutes. I'm going back to bed.

Priorities

2011-01-15T11:19:00.002-05:00

So I got all worked up about tickets to Tampa to see Jimmy, and I waited until 10 am today to hop online and score some passes to Margaritaville for the family.
SCORE! I had a lock on 5 tickets in the third row! The clock was ticking in the little box to the right. I had two minutes to decide. I was so excited I never checked the price.
$787.00 What the..

I was a bit shocked, then adding the airfare, and I was a bit dismayed. I just couldn't hit the button to purchase. Solar panels, wind generator, watermaker, new batteries, refrigeration, all flashed before my eyes. Several thousand dollars for four hours of fun just didn't click, and neither did the mouse.

Well, Jimmy, maybe I'll see you on the beach somewhere warm in a few years. I'll bring my guitar.

One of those days

2011-01-09T10:20:00.000-05:00

We have a plan. In less than 900 days we hope to cast off from the cold waters of Lake Ontario, and head out the St. Lawrence to a new life. We are not retiring, just re-living. We desire a much simpler life, with a focus on the world around us. So much time has passed, where we were focused on the day to day "chores" that our lifestyle required. Don't get me wrong, we had some great moments, and were blessed with good jobs and our children mean everything to us. It just passed by so fast, that we never really paused long enough to get the maximum enjoyment of those moments. Life demanded that we keep moving, get to work, got a project due, get to hockey, soccer practice, quick dinner, mow the lawn, etc. We just want it to slow down.

Today I'm especially bummed about not getting away. As the news unfolds about the Arizona shooting of Senator Giffords, and the killing of Judge Roll, a nine year old child, and so many others, I feel a need to just leave. Sounds like running away from problems, but I just need a break from the crap politics, the hate speech on the radio, the TV talking heads spreading lies and hate, the citizens taking sides, us against them, red state blue state, conservative, liberal, blah blah blah. Why can't we all just be Americans, fighting for freedoms as one? Why do we let people divide us, and incite the crazy a-holes among us?

I need a beach.

Too much fun

2010-12-26T10:17:00.000-05:00

Having too much fun up here on the south shore of Ontario, as we have our youngest and LOUDEST daughter up for a visit. Good food and drink with most of the families. Wish we could have all the family together for the holiday, but we do what we can. Seems every year our families get further apart, as kids grow up and move away. Pretty soon marriages, kids and with any luck, jobs will separate us further from our families. The days of everyone living in the same city, or even state seems to be a rarity. We were spread out from Oregon to Texas, Florida and back up to NY, but now we range from Florida to New York. A bit easier, but still tough to get us all together.

Went to Buffalo before Christmas to visit my folks, as my sister had to cancel her holiday dinner. Hope you feel better Chuck. So my Dad wanted to meet at a bar for a few beers. OK, so off to The Brick House tavern we went. Not having been there, it was quite a surprise to see the place filled with guys, and very few women. The women that were there, aside from my family, we dressed in short shorts and halter tops. Well, yahoo! Nice place Dad. The twenty somethings would stop by the booth for a chat, and pretend they were interested in your life story. I looked over at my girls and saw their thoughts hanging over their heads...Tramp. Seriously! Isn't she cold? Skank. You don't need to do this. Dad, you're disgusting. I like those shoes....
My mom was the ambassador for the table, and did all the talking while me and my dad just nodded our heads from time to time. We don't get out much.

We're heading down to Georgia to take my youngest home, and poke around in her new hometown, Savannah. Hoping all the snow along the way is either melted, or plowed to the side.
I still can't believe she's allowing us sleep over in her little apartment. The image of me in boxers, scratching my butt in front of the coffee pot will be etched in her holiday memories for a while. Poor kid. She better sleep in.

Happy Solstice!

2010-12-20T20:38:00.000-05:00

According to my Germanic heritage, any dreams on this night foretold events in the coming year. I hope I dream of a working refrigeration system, and a dry rudder.

Hopefully, many of you will see the lunar eclipse. We are covered in clouds :(

Cold Beer

2010-12-20T09:15:00.000-05:00

Looks like Sea Frost is going to be the provider of cold beer and food this summer. We went with them based on the SSCA survey results, which showed many cruisers were happy with this system. So now we will not have to run the engine before we head to bed, or when we wake up. Nice. I still have to figure out where the compressors are going to go. For a 44 ft boat, there really is not a lot of storage space.

Our rudder has started to de-laminate again. Looks like a bunch of holes for drying over the winter, then a nice squeeze into shape in the spring. Did not notice any rust colored water, so hopefully the frame is OK. I'm really going to seal it up good this time. In fact, 10 mil of Interprotect should keep it dry, as long as I get a good seal around the shaft. Never owned a boat with a dry rudder.

Hibernation

2010-12-17T08:46:00.004-05:00

I'm already in the hibernating mood, as winter has settled in. What do you do in a small apartment all winter? Not sure, but if I don't get it figured out, I'll emerge in the spring looking something like this:

When we had the house I was swamped with projects, and had a realistic deadline, so the pressure to complete was real, and the time flew past. My endless source of projects, das boat, is in frozen storage right now, so I'm trying to come up with a list of things for the winter to keep me busy. I want my friends to recognize me in the spring. What do you think of these ideas?

Endlessly surf the web, showing my wife all the funny and interesting things I've found.
Watch every sporting event that's on TV, including soccer on the Spanish channel, and Worlds Strongest Man. Poker is not a sport, and what's with the sunglasses? Seriously, Dog shows?
Watch the History channels and live in the past. Why don't they call it the WWII channel? Also, re-name the travel channel the Traveling glutton channel. Man vs Coronary artery disease is the only show it seems. Watch Americans eat other countries.
Curl up in a chair, and read every night, then go for stents in the spring.
Practice guitar chords all evening, and study Spanish phrases. Maybe even Spanish guitar! cómo es mi forma de tocar la guitarra?

maybe not.

I'm on vacation until Jan 3rd, so I'll have time to try some new winter activities. Got any ideas for me? Send them along. I'll be here, all the time, every day, until April...my precious.

Snow

2010-12-02T18:02:00.013-05:00

Well, this sucks. We received a few inches of white death already. Buffalo is still getting pounded, as it's up to their waists now.This guy could slow down a tad.

Amazing that this crap has started already. We always feared getting stuck in Buffalo, on one of our trips home. No offense Mom and Dad, but we all know 24 hours together is the absolute limit :)

I have a Sabres game to go to, and probably a Christmas run down the thruway. Hope I make out better than these people did.

Home Alone

2010-11-24T08:28:00.000-05:00

Got the week off from work, and have been puttering around in the Apt for 3 days now. BORING!! When the days were warmer I would check on the boat, and play around in there, but now that it's about 35 degrees, no thanks. The wind has been blowing stink here for the last week, and our cover is a bit...warn. Hopefully it will last the winter.

Going to finalize the fridge sale today. Business must be good for SeaFrost, as they seem pretty carefree about getting my business. Hopefully that doesn't mean they're about to tank. I pretty much made a commitment to purchase, supplied a drawing of our compartments, and no response. They only seem to respond to a direct phone call, and if the sale is not made during that call, they drift away. We'll see today, if I get bad vibes from this place or not.

Got a shopping list from the Admiral today, so I have to brave the grocery store on the day before the holiday, which I was trying to avoid. I noticed I get called "Sir" a lot more often now. What's up with that? :)

Up the Creek

2010-11-20T17:39:00.003-05:00

Went for a paddle last Monday. Was a beautiful day, and decided to get some thin water time in Irondequoit Creek (ee-ron-dee-kwoit) Got a little video of the relaxing day. Something about kayaking that just calms you down and gets your mind focused on nature. Felt good.

Irondequoit creek is Rochester's hidden wilderness. I launched at Bay Creek Paddling Center. They're great people there that love their sport.

Tucked in

2010-11-08T08:34:00.001-05:00

SV KellyNicole is all tucked in for the winter, and we can now hibernate until about April. I may still have some stuff on the boat that will explode in the deep freeze come January, so I'll have to make a few more trips out there. I hate to remove everything from the boat, then have to put it all back in there in the spring, so we now leave more items on-board. We are also in an apartment, and have little storage for things like cushions, beds, etc. It's 29 degrees :(

The only good thing about the deep freeze, is all the friggin spiders will die.

The Cover-up

2010-10-28T07:16:00.002-04:00

I never got to build a tree fort when I was a kid. Kind of making up for that now. Though, looking at my woodworking, I would say I'm lucky I never got that chance, especially in a tall tree.

I'm hoping I can get some work done in this fort I'm constructing. Maybe with a heater going, I can attack some of those projects I have lined up. It would be nice to get the refrigeration units installed this winter, and the v-berth ripped up to get the holding tank removed. That one will be a bear. I might be overly optimistic here, because when the snow starts blowing, and it’s about 20 degrees, I may find it hard to leave the couch in front of the fireplace. Did I tell you I hate NY winters?

There will not be anything happening inside, if I don't get the crappy tarp over this frame. Seems the wind started blowing as soon as I got ready to put it up. It takes two people, so I have to wait for wifey to find time away from work before I can cover up the master carpentry. Inside storage ($$) is looking real good right now. Hmmm..

Refrigeration

2010-10-22T20:48:00.000-04:00

Well, we're going with Sea Frost to keep the beer cold. Was not impressed with their public relations at the show, but I get good reports about the units, so let the cash flow. Holding plates seem to work for us, so we'll stick with them. I do have to make the freezer smaller, and add some insulation to the fridge. Maybe a vacuum panel liner for the inside. I suppose a freezer would come in handy, but we don't eat meat, and ice cream is evil, delicious, but evil, so not sure what we will put in there. Guess we could always shut it off until we need it.
I am also considering buying the solar panels real soon, as China has restricted the sales of rare earth minerals to the the US and Japan, which should impact the price of panels in the coming months. Doesn't it figure, that when electric cars are about to hit the market, that the rare earth magnets that the high efficient motors need, are all mined in China.
Not much else going on, except the construction of the framework for the boat cover this weekend. At least I will not be raking leaves this year :D

Scenes from the Laundromat

2010-10-18T21:18:00.001-04:00

On Tuesdays, we go to the laundromat. The one in our building, is just that, one. There is one washer and dryer, and it always has some guys underwear in it. Last Tuesday we were sitting in our brightly lit room full of spinning clothes, at the local laundromat, and I was pretty bored. I'm currently reading a book that is really good about every 100 pages or so. So I keep reading it. I looked up from the book and saw some cute Marisa Tomei looking woman sorting her laundry. OK, I noticed. So about another ten pages into this crappy book, and in walks this Frankie Valli looking guy in a tweed sport coat, and clicky shoes. It sounded like he was about to do a dance on the tile floors, as he tapped his way to a washer. Frankie noticed Marisa, and immediately lost all his composure. This guy actually stopped, and stared at her, then took a minute or two, of short steps towards the washing machines with his tiny bag of clothes. He deposited the quarters one at a time, fumbling them while undressing this woman. Finally his machine was running and he paced back and forth for a bit, probably wondering how to get this woman's attention. She wasn't too interested, and he walked out the front door, with a look back, maybe heading for a martini at the bar next door, so he could work up some nerve.

About 20 minutes later, here comes Frankie through the front door, looking like he was ready to run a marathon. Really short shorts, exposing two sticks full of hair, some nylon stretchy shirt, and a stupid looking, not quite a baseball hat on his tan head. Frankie got his laundry, did some stretches, and bent over to put his clothes in the lowest dryer, all in front of this cute uninterested woman. Marisa looked up from doing her nails, smirked, then continued filing. Frankie leaned on the table and asked Marisa how long a quarter would get him. There was a pause, then she laughed the most hideous nasal noise you ever heard. Like her nose was in a vise grip, she said "Ha ha ha about six minutes, ha ha ha ha". Frankie's head jerked back a bit, smiled, said thank you, and after awkwardly starting the dryer, left through the front door with that voice stuck in his head. Marisa quickly gathered her laundry and left before Frankie decided to put his tap shoes back on. Wow, you don't get this kind of entertainment in the suburbs. Love the city, and this trip was way better than the last one, where we just had the crazy guy watching our laundry spin around.

Boat show:
We were strolling the docks at the boat show, when we heard over a PA something like "owners of a French flagged vessel please report to your boat". Hmm, someone is in trouble, I thought. We exited the show, totally bored with the HUGE sailboats, that nobody can afford, and walked the Naval Academy grounds. When we got to the shoreline we saw some towboat US guys around a cat in the harbor. Looking closer, we saw the big cat was up against a mono-hull, and they were gouging themselves nicely. One of my fears when anchoring is having some boat drag down on us when we're ashore. That, and Whales knocking my keel off. Imagine the shock these folks have in store for them, when they return to the damage. Wonder how they find out what happened? Will TowboatUS notify them somehow? Were these the folks being paged?

That sucks

Boat Show

2010-10-09T09:33:00.000-04:00

We made it down to Annapolis for the sailboat show, and we've already seen some familiar faces. Funny, you read the cruising blogs, trying to live their dream from your computer, and then you bump into them. You wonder if they get creeped out when you say, "I read your blog, how's the cat been feeling." I myself think back on older blog posts, and wonder if someday someone will come up to me and ask me if I ever got those davits installed, or "you looked so funny with that towel around your head, pretending to be Indian". Worse, "you think you're funny with that bath towel on your head, I curse your family, you..."

So today we'll hit the tents looking for a deal on refrigeration. I'm not a guy that can swing deals. If I don't hear the right price, I just walk away, so this should be interesting. I know what I want, and there are several manufacturers out there, so we'll see how well we do. Neither one replied to my e-mails requesting a quote, and I will bring that up.
Hopefully we will run into more bloggers, so I can creep them out.

Bad rap

2010-09-20T21:40:00.001-04:00

I guess I gave Rochester a bad rap. It really can be fun here, as long as you don't think about summer constantly, like I do. If you are willing to give up thoughts of sailing and boats for a few months, you really can entertain yourself. We sit on the Erie canal, and the southern shore of Lake Ontario, and are minutes away from the beauty of the finger lakes and wine country. Fall foliage can be beautiful, and the winter skiing can be great too, as we have some awesome hills locally, and Adirondack park is hours away. So don't let my winter blahs give you a bad impression of Roch cha cha. Come on over and taste some of our apples, walk over some crunchy orange leaves, and pick out your pumpkin. Go on a hay ride, grab some cider, and snuggle up by the bonfire. We live in the city now, and I can say that it is really going to be a fun off season...as long as I don't freeze to death :)

Looks pretty nice

We have water falls

And we have the white and gray death :( Sorry, it's just so damn depressing

Winding Down

2010-09-19T12:09:00.000-04:00

Well, the summer is winding down for us, and we are thinking about putting the old barge away for the winter. Many others have a jump start, but no rush for us. It's not like I have yard work to do :)
We'll start next weekend, or maybe I'll come out during the week and get some things like the oil changed, pump out, and fuel top-off. I have to clean one tank, as it's pretty bad, so looking for ideas on how to accomplish this. I think there is about 20 gallons in there.
Everyone here loves fall, and I can't figure out why. Upstate NY, especially around Rochester, is always overcast and gray. You would be lucky to get maybe 5 days of sunny fall weather, where you can say wow, what a day. Most of the time it's cold, and damp, and very little sun. You might say I'm getting a jump start on miserable.

Apartment life is starting to take shape. The broad, er, uh, woman upstairs really loves her heels. In fact, she wears them all the time. The kitchen sink drain sprung a leak. Deb called the maintenance guy. I'm no longer the fix it guy :) Sweet. I hate plumbing. Aside from the heels, the apartment is ok. As long as we keep that sail away date in mind, we can tolerate it.
985 days.

Echoes

2010-09-12T17:00:00.001-04:00

As I walked through our empty house, from room to room, my footsteps echoed off the bare walls and floors. How strange the feeling, that a house once so alive with activity, was now so empty and quiet. Lost in memories in each room, the echoes from my footsteps were replaced with the laughter of the kids on my back as I carried them around the living room. The giggles and screams as I snared them, when playing alligator. The dining room filled with toys, instead of furniture. Kelly and Nicole making pretend dinners, playing house. Our dog Murf, guarding them, and trying to get in on the action from time to time. The kitchen is where I would use every pot and pan to make dinner, and then the playtime afterward as Deb cleaned up my mess. Our family room truly was just that. It was a place to laugh, watch movies, cuddle. Some shenanigans would also happen there too. Can't have a ceiling fan, and not spin some stuffed animals off it, or try to toss them through the spinning blades.
Bed time stories, and chasing kids in pajamas. Hiding under beds, and in closets, made the half hour before bedtime so much fun. Murfy getting a bath, then racing around the house trying to dry off, while the girls screamed trying to get out of his way. The birthday parties, the friends, and the relatives, so much fun and laughter. It's the laughter I remember most of all, and those are the echoes I hear, as the door closes on another chapter in our lives.
We had a happy home.

A Change in the Weather

2010-09-03T18:24:00.002-04:00

Damn it got cold. It's like a switch was thrown, and we went from 90 to 70 in an instant. Oh well, it had to end sometime. Cooking up some pasta in the galley, with some summer squash sauteed in garlic, and of course some cool tunes from radio margaritaville. A little grape helps too. You know it's cold when I start drinking wine.
One good thing about the cold is the cyanobacteria is gone! Just like that, it was gone overnight. Not sure if I would take a swim, but it looks a hell of a lot better.


Looks like fall is coming

She's not liking the cold either

Cyanobacteria

2010-08-29T18:41:00.001-04:00

Nice to know we are floating in a toxic soup. They found Cyanobacteria in our waters recently, and more tests are being done to see what other goodies there are out here. Meanwhile, people are still on their PWC's and dinghies, water skiing, etc. Dopes. One guy said he just got his sense of taste and smell back, after a week. The word is getting out slowly, but only through people talking. Maybe some signs posted around the waterfront? Seen too many people still messing around in this stuff. Hell, I don't even want to anchor in it, for fear I'll get some on me. Nasty. Just nasty.

Fall in and die.

Toxic Algae

2010-08-28T08:59:00.000-04:00

Couple weeks ago we noticed some light blue "cream" in the water. Thought it was a spill of some sort, but turns out it is a toxic algae bloom. The waters of Sodus Bay and many smaller lakes in northern NY are experiencing this. The reports are saying there are toxins released into the water, and fish, pets, and humans are vulnerable. There is a large fish kill at the south end, and a dog has died from swimming in it. This is not good. I have been in this Bay over 17 yrs, and have never seen this. Environmentalists say it was because of the warm spring we had, which promoted the weed growth, that gave us this algae.

Good day to sail

2010-08-15T14:11:00.000-04:00

We were a bit hesitant to leave the slip yesterday, as the wind was howling, and peaking in the twenties. We waited and waited for it to calm down a bit. We don't fear the wind at this speed, we fear the slip exit. The bow can get blown away from you pretty quick, and there isn't much room to maneuver the barge. The wind dropped enough for us to exit, so we went for it. We made it just fine, even as the wind went right beck up to the twenties. Daughter Kelly and Eric were with us, and our friend Don came along. Was a nice ride, but the wind was gusty, which kept us on our toes. Deb did not steer, or tweak the sails at all this ride. Was weird just having her as a passenger / docking master.

Buzz post

2010-07-29T20:42:00.001-04:00

I managed to find my way back from Captain Jacks, and amazingly, I can still type. So I would like to make a blog entry. First off, the bartenders were amazing. Very skilled at communication they are. Had me laughing most of the time, except when they were discussing how cheap the tips were. Put the pressure on they did. The most amazing blue eyes for pirate girls I must say. Had me in a trance. Before I knew it, I was 5 beers into the night, and thinking about how long a walk i had back to the marina. Nothing worse than staggering across the road waving to your marina mates, as they glare at your handy footwork on the curbside. "He's in the sailboat on E-dock isn't he. Hmmm, where's his wife? Drunk Ass"
So, Thursdays I get to hang out at the captain for a few laughs and goggles. Tonight it was bachelor night. Deb was out with some old friends, so I had to go out and make some new one's. Not sure if they will shout out my name next Thursday night as I arrive at the bar, but we'll see :D

Aye Captain.

Sunday Sail

2010-07-26T13:19:00.000-04:00

Got a nice sail in on Sunday. Not too crowded out there.

Getting our act together

2010-07-25T10:15:00.000-04:00

So much to do before the closing, only weeks away. We really have to get going on clearing out the house, as we are running out of time. Selling all the stuff is not as easy as we thought. Some of our relatives are helping out by taking some things like furniture, and some other household items we do not want in the apartment. Speaking of apartments, we are looking at one on Monday. One bedroom. Still bigger than the boat, but not much room for extra stuff. This is going to remind me of my bachelor days, having a bike in the bedroom. Not sure what Deb will allow in the apartment. The Sunfish leaning against a wall might be too much. Guess we'll have to have a storage facility for now, as we love the Kayaks, and Sunfish racing may still be in my future.
We may get some more sailing in this week, as I am on vacation, and getting the house ready is a priority, so if I get all that crap done early we may have time for a sail or two.
We are now wired to cyberspace, so I can bore you with more posts.

Sale Pending :)

2010-07-18T12:51:00.000-04:00

Yes! We have sold the house! We have to be out by August 20th, so let the mad dash begin. Just so you know, living on the boat has been great. Aside from the fact that I have to get up at 4:45 to get to work by 6, it has been nice. If all goes well (fingers crossed), we should be settled in, and living a house free lifestyle shortly. We are organizing our stuff for sale at the house very shortly. Everything must go! Well, we are keeping some stuff for the apartment, but not much. Minimum is the way to go. First we have to find an apartment for this fall, as this far north you don't live on a boat all year round.

Had a great sail yesterday, then met up with some friends to celebrate the house sale. Got a nice headache for all my fun. No sailing for me today. The boat did well in the first good blow of the year. We had over twenty, and some 2-3 foots swells, but she rode it all nicely. Took a 30 knot gust, and she did good, but I panicked and tried to reef the genny. Lots of lines whipping around until I furled it in. Not very captain like.

No wifi here, so I have not been keeping up the blog very well. We expect to have broadband hookup next week. Amazing how we can't live without internet nowadays.

Living Aboard

2010-06-26T21:46:00.001-04:00

Well, we have not sold the house yet. Many lookers, but no takers. We did finally start living aboard the boat, for most of the week. We have to be home to cut the grass and stuff, but other than that we are floating for most of the week. Feels good.

The sailors wind chimes clang and rattle
A full moon slips behind a cloudy shadow
Warm wind changes it course through the night
while the storm slips by, slowly out of sight
We yawn and we groan as we head for our berth
as the night time blankets sweet mother earth

Asylum

2010-06-16T19:59:00.000-04:00

The worst night of racing I've had in seventeen years just occurred. There wasn't anything I, or anyone else could do right. Most people see sailboats offshore barely moving along and think, "How boring that must be. Look how slow they're moving". Well, let me tell you it's a different story when you are out there. One wrong move and everything goes to shit in a hurry. We couldn't make the weather mark, but instead of tacking away early, we tried like hell to eek it out. Didn't work. Took a header close to the mark, then tried to tack away, without hitting it. We fell into irons, and stalled out at the mark in front of thirty five other boats barreling down the line. Oh God what a mess. We managed to slip out of the way of the carnage, and all the cursing and crunching fiberglass. At this point, we should have just pointed towards Canada, and asked for asylum. This was only the beginning of our trouble. The spinnaker set and jibe went well, but the jib never made it past the tangled pole, and the take down was more like a wrestling match with giant rainbow colored marshmallow man. We came in dead last. They were picking up the marks as we went past them.

Look like fun? I know a skipper who is probably looking for crew :(

Floating

2010-06-12T20:43:00.000-04:00

It was a battle, but we just needed one good weekend to get her together, and in the water. We arrived Friday night at Katlynn Marine in Sodus Point. We've met some very nice folks already, and have spotted some friends from Oak Park. The boat is one big dis-organized mess right now, but we've got all summer to get her ship shape. After all the effort on the house, and the craziness at work, it's not going to be a rush job when it comes to the boat. Not stress allowed on board!

Shine On

Lowered into the muck

The fun part. Thought I could just be a bystander...

But we all got involved. Heavy mast.

Ready for her new home. Goodbye Oak Park.

We got to our new marina, but someone was in our slip. We new this, as we had been inspecting earlier, but we had hoped they would be gone by the time we got there. Nope. So we went into a slip a few down, and as we were approaching I thought, "are we going to fit?" Well, we didn't. We wedged the fat old girl right between the piling and the dock. I was barely making way, so it was a love tap, but now what? We thankfully saw the power boat in our slip had crew getting her ready to leave, so we stayed wedged for a bit, much to the delight of the locals. Actually it's a nice way to dock, just pull forward slowly until you stick. After a slight delay, we backed out, and pulled her into her new home.
Feels good.