Saturday, April 25, 2009

She shiny Mon, one side

Well, kind of a productive day. Got one half of the boat waxed. Not sure if tomorrow will bring rain, if not, then wax on, wax off. The sounds of the boatyard were very therapeutic. The buzz of conversation. People saying "hellooo!" The whine of the polishers, the rumble of the engines firing up, the travel lift moving boats to the water, the smell of carnuba wax, the klink of empty beer bottles, the laughter. It was a stress reliever. Good to be back. Deb was putting the wax on, and I was waxing off (sorry). We did quite a good job, as she shines brightly, on the starboard side. I use finesse polishing liquid from 3M, and then apply Fleetwax. The best wax, and probably the oldest out there. Made in NY too! I use to travel a lot by bike when I was a kid. My parents never knew where the heck I was, and sometimes that was a good thing. I was into airplanes back then, and would hang out at an old airport in Amherst, and sometimes I'd hang out with the glider pilots in the old Niagara glider field. There was this old guy back then that would let me help him with the tow plane. I remembered all the tins of fleetwax laying around. The smell still reminds me of those days. By the way, Mom, you should know, they did take me up in the tow plane. So while you were cleaning the house, or grocery shopping, I was at 5,ooo feet, in the back seat of a clipped wing cup, with a glider on a line behind me. The scary part was the fact that I didn't have a stick, so if the old buzzard in front had a heart attack, I was toast. I asked him once, "where's the stick?", he said I could interfere with his piloting, so he took it out. Gee thanks you old bastard. I didn't say it, but I'm sure I thought it. Mom, you should have kept a closer eye on me. By the way, I could so land that plane if I had to. Histoy lesson: Colonite Fleetwax. Utica NY The company was founded in 1936 by the late Charles H. Collins ( pictured), who entered the automobile field with one single purpose in mind; to supply his customers with the highest grade products regardless of costs. Collinite is proud to still operate under this basic fundamental practice to this day. Its waxes and cleaners will never be found in cut-rate stores, nor the quality of its products compromised for marketing or quick profit shortcuts. Collinite can be found at most local automotive and marine stores. A guy at work, a hockey nut, will always tell a story of some drunken goalie who got booted out of the NHL, and is now pumping gas in Utica. Actually, if you think about it, that would pretty much be rock bottom wouldn't it. I'm tired, my arms are sore, my face is burnt. Life is good. Life will be better after a cold beer. Maybe a Utica Club Pilsner.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Could be worse

So, my daughter is going to travel across the country, by car, with boy and cat. I'm being the worrying parent, and thinking of all the problems that could arise, like flat tires, the old van crapping out, running out of money, runaway cat (y is that bad?), snow in the mountains, mountain lions (Kell is small), other drivers, mad truckers, asleep at the wheel, falling in the grand canyon, California, Oregon water torture, Joblessness, "Dad, I have no money".... There are many routes to take in life. One is the safe route, close to home, your support group, your security, the mundane, less challenging route. The other is the adventurous route, the risky, the exciting, challenging, and rewarding route. If I were to follow my parental instincts, and convince her to stay in her security zone, it would be like someone convincing me not to sail out of sight of land, to hug the shore, be back before dark, stay tied to the dock. You could sink, drown, get lost, pirates, sharks, sunburn, jellyfish, barracuda (I'm small), dehydration... What fun would sailing be if we just went the same route every weekend, and came back to the same dock every time. What new skills would we learn, what new fun, and adventure would we have, if we saw the same things, and only sailed on perfect days? We would be bored to tears, and would eventually give up the sport for golf (ugh), gardening and TV. There are things that can happen to you out there, but there are things that can never happen to you if you stay here. Kell, go have an adventure. Just call me every day. I want to hear all about it. Hey, it could be worse. Imagine what Jessica Watson's parents must be going through.
Youngest To Solo Sail Round The World Click here for her story “Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” -- Mark Twain

Wax, Sweat and Tears

Looks like a warm weekend coming up! About time. We will try to get the old girl all waxed and painted, and ready for the splash. Quite a bit of work to do yet. But this work is relaxing. This will be number one's last weekend here in the east, for quite a while I imagine, as she heads west for a new adventure. It's tough to have them leave the nest, but then to have them go to the other side of the country is really tough. I wonder if I can get her to wash and wax the boat before she hits the road? Paint the deck? Be yourself, be good, be careful. And most of all, keep smiling. We will miss that smiling face around here.
Go west young girl!

Monday, April 20, 2009

So tired

All I want to do is sleep. Got a whole four hours last night. Maybe two the night before. Tonight I'll lay there worried a tree will pierce me, as the winds are gusting to forty. Our house is surrounded by old growth trees, just waiting to impale me before I get a chance to cruise into retirement. See how I get with no sleep. Had dinner with number one, and her boyfriend and parents yesterday. I was very nice. Now I know why he is a good kid. We'll miss them both as they head west for a new start. Wish the economy was better here, so they can stay...at least until we leave. I hate being the last one out. Well, maybe the gods will have pity on me tonight and I'll finally get some rest. I have to stop my mind from racing around with all that is happening, as I can't do much about it anyway. Sweet dreams.

Sunday, April 19, 2009

Go Bruins!

Picked a bad time to drop to basic cable. I was talking to time warner on the phone last week. I wanted to lower my cable bill, and the guy pissed me off so bad, I said fine, give me the lowest plan you have! Ten dollars gets you 17 channels. Basically it's four major channels, then crap. So now the Bruins are kicking Montreal ass, and I can't see it. I'm depressed, and all the family is laughing, but I'm sticking to my guns. We were paying over $110 for what? We should actually be getting more things done around here now, as we're not locked into the beam. Oh, and they said I would have to cough up more for internet, because I picked the lower cable plan. WTF! They could not even explain that one. So I dropped down to a slower internet plan too. By the way, the CEO got a 22 million dollar bonus this year. I don't really care that the guy made some bucks, but he isn't going to get it from me. How many channels do you actually watch for the money you pay? Sailing can't start soon enough. I'm all stressed out. It's been great working for the damn auto industry. Doctor said stomach acid is to blame for my sore throat. Took a prescription yesterday, and got maybe 2 hrs sleep last night. Felt like I had a pot of coffee in my stomach. Throat felt good though.

PWC brakes

My favorite time on the water, is when there is just enough wind to get you going, and the water is flat, and the only sound you hear is the water rushing past the hull, the birds, maybe some kids splashing in the water nearby. It's nice. It never lasts. Usually, when the water is flat, and the late afternoon sun is getting low, some beer sponge in a crotch rocket (jet ski, pwc) comes out to cool off and race around for about fifteen minutes. Pretty soon, another will join, then another. After a while the nice evening turns into noisy choppy bedlam until the sun goes down. Now everyone is entitled to their way of fun on the water, and I have had some fun on a jet ski, about fifteen minutes worth, but just once, I would like to enjoy a nice quiet afternoon afloat. I only bring this up, because I thought the idea of brakes for PWC's was pretty cool. Might make things a little more safe out there for the sponges :)