Scrap Teak

so, someone at work was ditching this arrangement of scrap teak for
$15. bungs, galley panel, rub rail repair, pilothouse trim, and
more... if chica-san doesn't want it in the house.

sewing lessons

canvas & sails... here i come! don't quiver, you have plenty of time
before i get there.

and...

the quarter berth do over is still underway. new panels partially
fitting. more wrassling before i'm done.

boo!

haven't been blogging lately. been feeling quiet and still. here's a
shot of $10 spent well on non-skid stickies.

(fair) maiden voyage

Cap'n Chica takes the helm, learns to holler "ready about" and "hard a-
lee," and prioritizes some of the next ...how we say... "improvements."

Shirley D sez...

ditch the "adult content" button so she can use RSS. Ok, done! i just figured i was an adult and was tossing content at this thing, so it seemed obvious and logical. what exactly is "adult content?" is it just nekkidity and curse words? i'll never understand these things. no promise here that nekkidity and curse words won't show up...

Rise

Monday morning has a distinctly industrious sound. Looking east-
northeast from the foreward hatch after slowly awaking, giggling
together, and arising. Good morning, world.

When the spirit moves me

it's amazing what i can do when chica says she's selling the boat. threw it right in, it floated, sailed, and the engine ran with a little coaxing. of course, i wouldn't be home free without Kevin & Tom's help. Kevin and I sailed her over to the Boathouse under the power lines and around Devil's Elbow. She bit Kevin's finger, and we nearly buried the rail a couple of times in gusts up to 20 knots. ok, maybe we weren't that close. chica and i are heading up tomorrow to see if Pixie the Boat still floats and start with the rest of the projects. on the list are moving the engine more toward starting on the first bump, addressing the vberth comfort situation, and measuring for a cockpit bimini. minor poking around will include a good interior washdown, lazy jacks, some temporary cabin lighting, and some wiring along with various odds and ends. maybe even install the grill and cook something on it. having the boat in the water is far nicer than having it in the yard. way cleaner, too!

Ha!

Soon now

Today's the day. Float.. upright... and all that.

...and nostalgia

back in '92 (before the turn of the century) john and del were snooping around a chart of the st. johns (http://www.charts.noaa.gov/OnLineViewer/11487.shtml) and found rat island. nearby, of course, was polly island which served as a useful euphemism for the gold sailing jewelry motif and white captain outfit approach to boats. john and del let me in on their little club when I handed over beer and agreed to be admiral, commodore, gofer, and bilge boy... and agreed that there could never be any other members. well, you see, john was trying to sell his sailboat to me, so he had to make some concessions. there _was_ the initiation ceremony which required new members to drink a pitcher of beer poured down the ass crack of the current admiral(s) and/or commodore(s). unfortunately, both non-members of the RIYC were admiral(s) or commodore(s) depending on their mood and state of cleanliness. oh, man. must be why i've moved from beer to the wine that's been lurking in the fridge for a month or two. as i recall, herschel was the 4th confirmed non-member. i sense in the making a re-convergence... a re-alignment... a cooler full of beer. at least some sailing and some lying.

as all good yacht clubs do, we had races. mostly beating cheaks down the dock to get more beer, but races nonetheless. cheating in any observable manner was highly encouraged. points were awarded for ramming other boats, insulting the skippers, stealing their beer, and stealing their women. note that this was before women were allowed into the club (or would accept an invitation or offer a beer). holing other boats raised the points algorithmically. sinking other boats and drowning their skippers (much to their chagrin) was the stuff for which songs were written in the RIYC verbal history. tussling with non-non-members seemed to happen fairly often, and was a source of great anticipation, joy, and entertainment. tussling with non-members was not out of the question, either. we had to change the points accumulation rules on a daily basis, and immediately lost track of who was ahead. good thing beer was available. the first and only behavioural rule, to which we all were required to sign affidavits (or maybe not) was, "there shall be no rules." time passed, and folks got wind of the RIYC. i remember having to deny the existence of the RIYC and my involvement in it when the Palatka Yacht clubbers started inquiring as to how to join. why do people like to join groups? is it the cool factor? is it an acquisition - a collection - a be here now thang? maybe it's just the chance to drink a beer together. that's alright.

that was back in the day.

this is now. i have paid membership dues and received a license tag, a momentus event in the history of the RIYC, surely! things have changed. my vehicle has intermittent wipers, windows that roll all the way up, and a/c. it claims "no trouble codes found" on a regular basis. absolute luxuries. the state of florida has heard of the RIYC. i seem to recall that RIYC was told to cease and desist with the "RIYC" thing - a proper throwback to the good old days. i heard the letter threatened something about tarnishing a motif of boat jewelry and white captains' outfits. so now there's a modicum of respectability about the whole venture, if not a website (http://ratisland.com). and rules. oh, the rules. and the insurance! if insurance is not of satan, it is satan itself (you know that satan is "shaitan" which simply means "against, adversary, opponent, etc. " don't you?). so now i have to buy insurance to park my boat. this i will do because it's a rule. the cost of entry to the boat game these days.

well, you see the state of the wine glass and the recently enshrined RIYC license tag, don't you? you will surmise what you may surmise. until later, chica says, "don't gleek the cat!"

ps - if you haven't done it already, go see Slumdog Millionaire at the movies.

There is beauty

Goodbye

Lesson #1472: Never sell your longleaf pine on white oak double-ended, canoe-sterned, 32 foot Danish sailboat to a woodworker with a pole barn who promises to take care of her.

1.75 Coats of Anti-Foulant

Ugh. 1.25 to go, but a few days before we throw in. Lots of activity this weekend. Tom and Jerry were shoving boats all over the yard. More later.

1st Coat Bottom Paint

One more tomorrow, then another before launch. I've got 60 days to get it into the water or I have to sand before I paint. Ack. Beat. Going for shower.

Last Barrier Coat

Now for the black Trinidad before the 2000E goes tack free.