WE ARE BACK, finally

After being hijacked by some unknown person we are finally able to post on the blog. All of you will realize that Jeanne is the brains of this enterprise so you will have to wait until she finishes laying tile in her new house.....lotsa tile..... Please say nice things about her hard work. Older women need encouragement.....

Hello Again!

It's been a busy few months.... When last I wrote, SCUBA classes were in the future, as was the Miami Boat Show and I had just begun to work-out regularly again. Well, let me get things updated starting with the boat show. We stayed in Fort Lauderdale with my sister and brother in law so there was plenty of time to take a full day to look over all the goodies (and boy-howdy were there a LOT) then go back on the last day for all the bargains we'd been told the exhibitors would have... they were too smart for that this year, companies sent mock-ups of their items to the show so they didn't have display models to sell cheap. Oh well, we had a wonderful visit with my family and Bill placed a large enough order with one company that they gave him a fairly good discount and had it all shipped to us at the marina within a few weeks. Now we are working on getting everything installed in Iron Jack. But that's another story for another post....... I attended 2 SCUBA classes per week for 4 weeks and was a very good student (If I do say so myself!). Once again, it was time to take advantage of my sister's hospitality as the open dives necessary for certification were to be in the Atlantic off Pompano Beach. There were to be 4 dives, 2ea on Saturday and Sunday, during which we would demonstrate the skills we'd learned in the classroom and pool at American Divers Int'l.. My classmates and I proved ourselves to be eligible for certification as Open Water Divers and had a lot of fun in the process! I only wish that I'd had more time in the intervening 3 months to practice my new skills. I think that's my own fault for not fitting it into my schedule so I had to 'just do it'....... Planet Fitness still isn't as user friendly as Curves (not by a long shot) but I have become accustomed to it and have even been mistaken for a 'gym rat' by a few other members (that's a compliment, I'm told). I've even got a friend coming with me now... she's wanted to work out for a while but was a bit intimidated by the equipment. She seems to enjoy it now, maybe my time at Curves helped me be a good personal trainer for her....... Well, I have to get back to work now... I'll tell you what we're doing now when I next write...... The pic is of my Louisiana friend, Kay and I hamming it up for the camera when she was down for a visit......

Nagging DOES work.... somewhat!

After multiple reminders that nothing has been added to this journal for a LONG time, I am finally taking the time to sit and bring things up to date. See... nagging can be effective.

The last couple of weeks have not been terribly productive but they have been busy! Bill has spent a lot of time measuring sails, making wiring/lighting plans, checking bulbs and making lists. All in preparation for the Miami Boat Show, which is taking place this weekend. We are hoping to find good deals on all the items on our lists. My sister and brother-in-law live in Ft Lauderdale and have graciously invited us to stay with them for the duration... there should be plenty of time for a good visit and I'm looking forward to it.

My first class in the Scuba diving course is Tuesday evening and I have been busy trying to get the 125 pages of the textbook read... this middle aged mind isn't used to school work... my sympathies to all students everywhere! I'm hoping that the insight into the underwater world will be worth it. (I've been assured by numerous folks that it IS.)

I've also been going into Planet Fitness every morning, yikes... Curves is so much easier on the body... I never had muscle soreness like this while going in to lady-friendly Curves!! I sincerely hope that this is a short term pain... it couldn't be that all this sitting around on my rear and eating out all the time had anything to do with it, could it?

Today we took all Iron Jack's sails into a sail maker to be inventoried and checked. Mac, the sail maker will let us know whether they are worth keeping and repairing or if we should be on the lookout for new ones. He seemed to feel that repair would probably be feasible... yippee, that would save a chunk of change! Keep your fingers crossed!

Talk to you again after the boat show.

A Seagull bites the Dust, errrr Water

We, the crew of the S/V Iron Jack, stayed fairly busy this week. Bill repaired and replaced the box around the house batteries and he also replaced the oxygen sensors on his truck... his gas mileage improved right away. We designed and built a shade canopy out of pvc pipe and a sumbrella panel that was onboard... had we walked over to the other side of the marina beforehand we would have used the same design as is on a boat over there.... it uses a tarp, a few pieces of hardware, less pvc and produces a more flexible end product, we'll be changing ours a.s.a.p.!

Mother nature let us see her realism this week.... I was on deck making a rug non-skid with some silicone caulk when a dead seagull floated by the bow of Iron Jack. There was no obvious injury, but the poor thing would definitely never fly again.

On a lighter note, I signed up for scuba diving lessons, they begin Feb. 21 and continue for 4 weeks, ending with 2 dives on a wreck out in the Gulf Stream. I'm looking forward to both the classes and the dives, plus.... I'll be able to do our bottom cleaning and zinc changing... oh goody, goody!!

I also signed up at Planet Fitness and start on Monday, getting my own workout set-up by their fitness instructor. It's time to get the muscle tone back and the body fat percentage lowered! I would have gone back to Curves, since it's such a good workout, but the nearest one is quite a distance away from the marina.

The engine is reassembled and was on the dinghy for a day. I took it out for a spin... another skill set that needs a GREAT DEAL of work!! Then Bill took me out and showed me how it should be done. We ended up the lesson by taking the engine back OFF the dinghy so that the leak in the inflatable floor could be patched. The first try with adhesive designed specifically for hypalon was a failure but a second attempt is in the works now.... hope for the best.

We spent a wonderful evening last night with a fellow short term marina tenant. Sean is a young man from New Zealand who has spent the last few years travelling around the world, this leg of his journey includes buying and repairing a sailboat to sail around the Caribbean. He bought his boat about 3 weeks ago and plans on heading south in the next few days... obviously he's a LOT faster at this than we are! Oh well, we aren't in a race and we ARE having a great time enjoying the nice climate we're in.

Running in Circles but no longer Stuck in the Mud

This week has been spent taking one step back for every two forward, or visa verse! But the water level has risen a bit so we are no longer sitting in the mud while in our slip, it's nice to feel the boat rocking with the breeze.

We ordered gasket material for our portholes and a rebuild kit (mainly for the gaskets) for the dinghy motor, both items took longer than promised to get in.... and the gasket material was the wrong stuff. That wouldn't have been so bad but we forgot to bring the map when we went to pick up the gasket material in West Melbourne and took a very scenic, circuitous route to get there, our 45 minute task turned into an over 2 hour trip. I got a case of the giggles over the whole situation as it nearly replicated one I went through a few weeks ago trying to get into the local Goodwill store, not as easy a feat as it sounds.

Bill put in most of our 110v outlets, they still have to be wired and so we are now on the hunt for less costly marine grade wire. Every field has its' own specifications for these things, usually with good reason, but that does make it more difficult for DIYers.

We remeasured the sails, in hopes that we might be able to find some newer replacements.... thought we'd found some on the very southern end of Merritt Island, but they were nearly as old as ours and would have required too much work to retrofit.... oh well, we'll just keep our ears and eyes open. One recommendation was that we buy new, Chinese made sails as they are about the price of American made used ones. Not sure if we'll go that route though.

I found some book covers at the aforementioned Goodwill store (after I finally navigated their entrance) that, with minor alterations should work for porthole covers... there's something to be said for privacy... though I have to admit that I prefer the light they let in, so I'm not working too quickly to get the covers made!

Last night Harbor Square Marina had a hot dog cookout and pot luck. About 30 of us liveaboards showed up and there were a LOT of goodies to pick from! It was a fun evening and we enjoyed getting to meet some of the folks that are our neighbors here.

The photo is of Boots, the boat cat, desperately looking for land! Keeping my fingers crossed that the upcoming week is a bit more productive and entertaining!!

Slowly, but surely getting ready to sail!

Each day finds us just a bit further along the path to actually sailing! The second half of this week we pulled out and replaced the bad house batteries, created a first aid kit, organized the head, finished storing the off-season linens and clothing, gave Bill a much needed haircut, put the new carburetor on the dinghy motor and marked/measured the boom gallows so we can take it in tomorrow to be welded.
We also found a Rope shop with all kinds of fun and functional stuff, all we bought this time was bungee cording to make port light curtains but next time we'll be buying replacement lines for a few sails. Just down the road from the rope shop was a small flea market... imagine our surprise at finding a 30' long 5/8" double braid dock line for $5.... he came down to $4 for us! At the same market we got about $40 of candy for $15, all in all a GREAT shopping trip! Whew... I'm exhausted just from listing it all!

To relax from all the hard labor, we took Iron Jack out on Saturday for a 3 hour tour (hum the Gilligan's Island theme song here) that really lasted just 3 hours! I got my first lesson at steering the boat with a sail up. The wind was mild enough that Bill thought I could handle it if we only put up the roller furling Genoa... and no, I did NOT run her aground!! Didn't stray too far but I did take her under the bridge while under sail. Yippee!! Yes, I know this sounds kindergartenish to the salts among you but just try to remember back to your early days on the water.

Another Busy Week on the S/V Iron Jack

This past week Bill and I went on two buying trips... on Friday we drove south to Palm Bay where we bought a nice, little-used, 3.5 horse, Mercury engine for our dinghy. It needs a new carburetor but Bill found one on ebay and it should be arriving early next week. That should save time when I have to go anywhere in the dinghy as my rowing skills are less than stellar!
Saturday we crossed the state where we stopped in Cortez to pick up our new-to-us boom gallows which is going to save Bill from knocking his noggin every time he goes into the cabin or out on deck!
While on Florida's west coast, I looked at a few houses in the Bradenton area. A couple of them looked like good deals but none of them screamed "Buy me, now" at me.
We stopped at the Regatta Point Marina and had lunch with fellow Sailmonster.com members WoBaby (Lisa) and SoNJSailor. Good food with good folk, who could ask for more?
After lunch we headed back east, making a stop at Fred's (Bill's brother) house in Orlando to drop off a few cans of Wolf brand chili... it seems that it isn't available in this part of the country! Since it's Fred's favorite brand, we decided that he was more than welcome to what we had. Stopped in Cocoa for dinner at a Mexican restaurant, it was very good and only slightly different from the Tex-Mex we are used to.
Sunday was a quiet day, Bill spent most of his time on another boat in the marina helping the owner do some engine work. I spent most of my time continuing to cram too much stuff in too little space. We also trial fitted the new boom gallows... with a few minor alterations and a little welding it should do a great job!
Monday, Bill and I pulled a role reversal.... he packed his stuff away in the starboard lockers and drawers while I went out on a buying excursion for provisions, one of which was a TV antenna with amplifier.... Bill went out and attached it to the signal flag halyard, hoping that the height would give us good reception. Turns out that the best place for it was on the deck right by the port hatch... we are now using the steel hull of Iron Jack as a giant antenna... whatever works!
Tuesday my car had to go into the shop where the right front wheel hub and bearings were replaced in record time for a reasonable price... WOW is the car quiet now! After getting back to the boat Bill cut down our new boom gallows to fit and it is sitting in place so that we can be sure it's perfect before we make it permanent.

Today was a BIG DAY for me... I had my first go at tiller steering Iron Jack. Took her down the canal to the Indian River and under the nearby bridge, turned around and came back to the marina entrance where I handed the tiller back to Bill so he could put her back in the slip. I wasn't ready for that experience quite yet... and may not be for some time. My last experience with tiller steering was MANY years ago on a MUCH smaller boat (12' Boston Whaler).