The Journey

"It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end."– Ursula K. Le Guin

As we were motoring down to Boca Grande, we realised how truly different this lifestyle is. It is not about getting somewhere quickly, it may not even be about getting somewhere. When you are traveling 5 miles per hour, getting somewhere takes a really long time. It's a day of a job to go 28 miles. So enjoying the journey is really important. It's something that we have to remind ourselves to do. We've been so focused on achieving targets and deadlines that making the shift to enjoying the journey is very interesting. You don't just plonk yourself down in the seat and wait to get there, the journey is for doing things, talking, and watching the world as we go by it. It is hard to stop watching the clock and constantly checking the mileage though!

At the Dock in Venice

Lovely, non-adventurous day today! Traveled via the Gulf from Longboat Key to Venice. Had some great sailing for a bit and then made it to Venice for about 4:30. Water is rather low here so 'parking' was a bit of a challenge. Tried three different spots, stopped to have a think, and then ended up tied to Higel Municipal Park dock. Very nice and much more secure than the other options we explored.

Made Steve blackened snapper and blackbean salad for dinner. Both new and since he called me a food goddess, I'm assuming he liked them!

An Adventurous First Day!

Up early (too excited to bother with sleep!) and after being fortified with a Stevie Special Breakfast, we returned the marina keys and backed quietly out of the slip. All modesty aside, it was a fantastic reverse, turn the wheel and head down the channel - incredibly calm.

Then we headed over to the St. Pete Marina for fuel. Very nice entry into the marina, circle around, nice line-up to the fuel dock, and slowly, slowly motor the boat up to the dock. Give a quick burst of reverse to stop the boat before it touches the dock - and get a full blast of forward! Instead of gently coming to a stop, it was full speed ahead towards the dock! And the further I pushed the throttle into reverse, the faster forward it went! Ooohhhh nnnnooooo!!!

And of course there was no time to yell, "STEVE !!!!" and let him come to the rescue (and heroically shoulder the blame if the boat got damaged)! Other thoughts of throwing my hands up or running away quickly flitted through and were discarded. Okay, going towards the dock fast is really bad, but we can go forward fast away from the dock fairly safely. Yank the wheel over to the left and zoom away from the dock. Steve leaps (heroically) across the boat and dives into the engine room where he discovers that the throttle cable had disconnected so every time I pushed the throttle down into reverse, it went forward!

We made one more attempt to dock, but were still moving too fast so Steve set the cable so we could slowly motor along in forward. I then circled the marina while he tied down the throttle and fixed it so we had reverse. After circumnavigating the marina four or five times, he was done and we had reverse again. We very slowly and cautiously approached the fuel dock again - coasting, a touch of throttle, coast, gently bump the dock and, whew!, tie up. Steve filled the boat with fuel and the jerrycans and for his sins, a bird pooped on his head! They also decided to decorate the boat, in 30 minutes no less!

Armed with both forward and reverse, and weighed down with bird droppings we headed back out into Tampa Bay - we're on our way, wahooo! Sailed most of the way down the Bay, motored under the Skyway Bridge and successfully navigated the little channel south of Egmont Key. Then WE TURNED LEFT!!! (At the end of every sail we've taken since getting the boat, when heading back we've always asked each other, "Should we turn left (towards the Keys, the Caribbean, the Bahamas) or right (back to work and the real world). Turning left this time was especially significant.) About an hour later we were heading towards the Longboat Key bridge.

After navigating the short stretch of the intercoastal waterway, we pulled into the anchorage. We smoothly 'drove' in, circled around and ran aground! After much discussion and trying different angles of forward and reverse (we have reverse!), we managed to get un-aground. We circled around some more and promptly ran aground again! This time I didn't tell Steve and hoped he wouldn't notice as I gently backed off the sandy place we'd driven into. Finally, we found a clear spot and dropped the anchor! Now remember, this is a place we have anchored in 4 or 5 times already...

At this point we were well ready for our bottle of Champagne (thank you, folks from BA!) which we had carefully lugged across the Atlantic for our first night 'at sea'. We had a toast up on deck and watched a beautiful sunset. What a wonderful day!

Sunday - Whoops! - Monday Morning Breakfast

Sunday Morning Breakfast - On Monday!

Since Sunday was so busy, we put off the Sunday morning bacon and eggs breakfast til Monday. It was quite a nice thing to do to get up on a Monday morning and have Sunday breakfast!

First Visitors and a Sunday Sail

Bill and Joe were our first visitors to our new boat home. They came for an afternoon sail as we did a trial run to test out all the systems and changes we've made. What a great day for a sail! It was sunny and pretty warm (light sweater weather) with a light breeze. We weren't screaming along, but Steve was able to get all three sails up and the motor off.

One of the things I like best about sailing is the moment when you get the sails up, they fill with wind, the boat starts moving of its own accord - and then you shut the engine off! All of a sudden it's wonderfully quiet and all you hear are the wind and the waves. Bliss.

Bill and Joe are good sailors and we had a lovely run out onto Tampa Bay and back again. After a successful docking (oh, I do love those!), we had cocktails on the deck and a leisurely dinner below (chicken with white wine sauce). It was a very cozy evening down below and really nice to catch up with some very special friends.

The Good Consumer

A pseudo government propaganda video on being a 'good consumer'. Does any of this sound familiar?

The Good Consumer

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=oK_7ju0W8HA

From Zen Habits:

"What’s consumerism? Basically, equating happiness with material goods. Buying in order to bring happiness and solve problems. Spending more and more — and earning more and more to support the spending — in order to realize the dreams given to us by advertising and a consumerist society.
It’s good for the economy but bad for the individual. We end up in an endless cycle of spending and debt and working more and more, and end up with lives filled with goods but empty of meaning and happiness."

No Wonder People in America Get Fat

As part of the new thrifty lifestyle, we did a bit of grocery shopping at Walmart and came to a realisation, no wonder people in America get so fat - the food doesn't taste like anything. The 'good stuff' is so bland that the only way to get one's taste buds excited is to eat something terrible for you - check out the line for McDonalds or fried chicken. Our grocery shopping excursion resulted in Romain lettuce which tasted like water, tomatoes of such a pale peach colour we couldn't even bear to buy them and ham which had just a hint of ham taste. After that we went running for hot chicken wings!

It took a lot of searching, but we finally found some great tomatoes (Italy quality) and they were three times more expensive than the peach coloured ones. I quickly threw them in the cart and decided to save money somewhere else!

We're 'Liveaboards' Now!

As of today, we are Liveaboards! No more condo, no more land-bound security net - our space is now 42 x 14 ft! What a change. But actually, it is much nicer than you would think. Although the kitchen (galley) is 5 x 3 ft, everything is at my fingertips. The whole place takes 30 minutes to clean (and that's for a deep, thorough clean). It's very 'wee', but well organised.
As with many wee spaces, as soon as you take stuff out or bring it in, it can look very crowded. Above is what the salon looks like while we're provisioning (getting food).

I've made approximately five trips to the supermarket to do the full stocking of the boat (and believe me, I am so sick of supermarkets!). We now have enough to be self-sufficient for the next 3-5 months. Yes, there will be food in the Bahamas. But, having been to the islands in the Med, we have a rough idea of what to expect at the Bahamaian island stores - some local produce and whatever stores arrive from the supply boat. We'd rather have a bit larger selection. Hence the big provision.

We spent quite a bit of time researching what is needed for 'ship's stores'. How do you eat well when there is no store to go to when you run out of something? There are lots of blogs with recipes and suggestions for how to provision for long trips. We took those and adapted for our taste preferences.
It doesn't stay chaotic for long! This is what the salon looks like when we've put the food away!

Preparation 3 - The Boat Prep

First Post By Steve (he's been busy!):

In the past two years these are the things we have done to the boat to get it ready to go and it's not finished yet:

Sails and Rigging:

Replace Running Rigging (Halyards and Sheets)
Replace Lazyjacks
Fit Reefing Points and Lines to Main Sail
Make good and repair sails
Service winches
New sail, winch, instrument and windlass covers

Engine and Transmission:

Strip and clean heat exchanger and oil cooler
Replace Thermostat and Raw Water Pump and coolant
Replace various oil and water pipes
Oil, Oil Filter and Fuel Filter replace
Polish Fuel
Replace propshaft and cutless bearing
Replace belts
New injectors, injector pump, fuel pump, oil seals

Electrics:

Two new house batteries
Overhaul high output alternator
Replace circuit breaker
Replace various bulbs including anchor and steaming lights

Communications & Navigation:

Fit chart plotter
Re-wire some of the HF Installation
Fit Pactor modem
Fix log
Fit Wi-Fi antennae

Refrigeration:

Replace the compressor and various pipes flush and replenish the system

Ground Tackle:

Replace both anchor rodes (chain and rope)

Fresh Water System:

Replace water pump
Overhaul water pump to make spare
Drain and flush tanks

Toilets and Washing Facilities:

Replace both holding tanks
Overhaul both heads
Replace forward masurator, fit new masurator in rear and overhaul old one to create a spare
Replace rear shower pump
Refit front shower fitting

Safety Equipment:

Overhaul liferaft
Re-register the EPIRB
Replenish grab bag
Replace lifelines

Cooking:

Learn to cook well on a boat (no beans and toast!)
Figure out how to provision / store for 3-6 months
Install spice rack

Hull and Deck:

Haul and anti-foul hull
Replace zincs
Compound and polish the topsides
Compound and polish deck
Re-paint antiskid
Varnish Brightwork
Replace some opening ports

Dingy and Outboard:

Modify outboard mount
Replace davit lines
Fit lifting eyes to Dingy
Dingy cover
Outboard cover

Other 'Stuff':

Fit shelves
Cut back shelf in rear cabin
Install step (for short people)
New cushions internally and in the cockpit
New stereo
Fit storage boxes
Oil Lamp
Galley Strap
Fender Boards
Jerry Can mounts

By Katherine:

Until we totalled it all up, we didn't realise what a huge piece of work this has been. Now this isn't to say we did every bit of it. Some of this involved giving money to others (in some cases far too much!) so they could do it. But a great deal has been done by Steve himself - talented electrician, plumber, engineer, painter, carpenter, 'systems' whiz that he is.

After looking at the list, perhaps we should have gone with a newer boat which didn't need so much done to it. But having chartered two and looked at many different models of the newer boats at the boat shows, we certainly wouldn't find one as nice for the money. The materials used in the newer boats are of a much (much, much!) lower quality than ours. Snowbird was built in 1983 and has solid wood throughout. Both the Jeanneau and the Benateau we chartered had pressboard throughout - looks nice initially, but quickly buckles under the strain of sailing (both Steve and Matt were falling through the floorboards of the last charter boat which was quite new). Until you get into the really expensive boats, the Amels or Tayannas, the quality materials are just not there - so I think we're very happy with what we have!

Also wondering how all this got done with all the work projects on in the past 2 years!

A Healthier Lifestyle

Steve has been working very hard on the boat and it shows! We're not
measuring in pounds (or stones), but his old clothes are getting a bit
too big!

Sail Covers - Check!

The sailcovers are now done!

Steve's Money Laundering

This is what happens when a leaky bottle of water rides home in your
bucket - wet wallet, wet paperwork, wet money!

There Be Gators!

After three weeks of work, Steve announced we were taking a day off (whew, yippee, wahoo!!!)! Somebody said this not working stuff was slow, boring and tedious. Ha, not with my guy! We haven't stopped since we arrived here. And, actually, even our days off are busy!

First thing (after breakfast, of course!) we went to downtown to St. Petersburg to check out the Farmers Market. After buying from Walmart we are desperately in need of veg that tastes like - well, veg - instead of insipid, bland, boring, picked too early stuff masquarading as veg! I want tomatoes that are red, not pink or peach, ripe and luscious. We didn't realise how spoiled we were buying from the farmers' market in Blackburn, what a difference in the taste of food. (Oh yeah, and I want cheese, real cheese - sharp, pungent, melt in your mouth French cheese - the kind which fails all US health inspections!)

After running various errands all over the county, then we went to GATORS for lunch! One of my favourites for seafood, sun and people watching. We lucked out and ended up with a waterfront table where we could watch the boats pulling up and the sailboats coming in and out of the pass. The famous smoked fish spread to start and chicken wings to finish - lovely!

Then we had a nap, then we went grocery (and boat stuff) shopping, then we had dinner (at 10:00)!

A Night Out in Gulfport (Again)

Our weekly night out on the town was spent this week at Pia's Italian Trattoria in Gulfport. We liked Gulfport so much that we wanted to visit again and after a busy day we were starving for an early meal.

After a wander down the main street and perusing all the restaurant menus, and after discounting the French restaurant (what self respecting French restaurant serves Virginia baked ham?), we settled on dining outside and Italian food at Pia's. It was an excellent choice and we had one of the best meals we've had this side of the Atlantic.

Of course no Italian would show up for dinner at 6:30 and it is doubtful the restaurant would even be open if he did, over here Pia's was hopping and we ended up with a lovely table. I had the tuna (or tunno) and Steve had the Fruitte de Mare. The waitress agreed to leave us alone and not bring each serving until we were done with the prior one, she also didn't bring the bill until we asked for it. The portions were huge so we had to bring some home and we didn't mind a bit because it was all so GOOD!

It was a great evening - especially when I forgot my handbag at the table, got all the way home, remembered it, came all the way back and it was THERE! Happiness is finding one's handbag!

Loafing Boy and Bucket

When Jess went to Cornwall, she brought back this collapsable bucket for Steve. He has used it every day since we have been here - it is a lunch pail, a tool box, a carry-all.

Every well dressed sailor should have one!

Sewing Central

Really into the sewing now! The fabric arrived for the sailcovers (which desperately needed replacing!), the awning, the rest of the winch covers and the all-important cockpit pillow! My sewing table - one of the more unique ones I've had - the vanity table in the bathroom. My cutting table - our bed. It has been really interesting trying to cut and sew these sailcovers. The picture doesn't do it justice, but that is essentially all the space I have around the machine (okay, maybe a few inches on the other side) and the sail cover is 16 ft long - I am becoming very accomplished at manuvering in tight places!

Jim, From the Boat Next Door

Our neighbor at the marina is Jim who lives on a boat he has been fixing up during all the time we have been at the marina. He's very quiet, but nice and always asks about our plans and offers to catch or hold a rope as we pull in or out of the slip.

When we saw Jim this trip, we both thought he looked different. It turns out he has lung cancer which has spread and now he also has a brain tumour. Although he was up and about when we first got there, he was taken to the hospital a few days ago. Jim won't be finishing his boat or going sailing.

He and Steve had a chat one afternoon while Steve was working on our boat. He asked about our plans and what Steve was doing. His message, 'Forget all that stuff and get out there.' I think we'll pay attention...

Preparation 2 - What Will We Do All Day?!

When Steve said he wanted to 'give up serious work' and, oh by the way, he wanted to do it in our 40s, my first reaction was, "OMG, what will we do all day?!" The concept of stopping work for more than a holiday isn't something encouraged by the American Keep the Economy Pumping Productivity Programming. You are supposed to work for as long as you can. Who would want to retire (because all you'll do is sit on a porch and die), right? I'd never even really thought about not working. The only alternatives I had ever considered were different types of work. Work is just what people do.

So when Steve said he wanted to do this (after the initial panic wore off) I had to start thinking about what I really wanted to do if I wasn't working on more than full-time transformation programmes. And once work comes out of the picture, you start to think about what you really want to do in your life. When you start to think that way, it's like looking at a blank canvas - what do I want to do?

I can see why people just fall into working forever, it's easy. There's no thinking involved. But I found being confronted with the blank canvas of my life really difficult. Thinking through and deciding what to put on that blank canvas is hard (especially when the hardy New England upbringing (work, work, work!) kicks in!). Some folks may have a long list of what to do if there is no work, but I suspect many more are like me - never really thought about it before.

Work isn't the be all and end all, and quite frankly I don't want to look back at 99 and think of how many great meetings I had or how much time I spent at my desk in a cubicle. Nope, I actually want to do a lot more than that, as I discovered when making my list of what I want to do post 'serious work'. (We are still tackling what to call this - it's not retirement, it's not a sabbatical, it's not a holiday - fodder for another post I think). I/we made our list and it wasn't an afternoon project - it took about two years to do.

There are books to write, instruments to learn to play, languages to speak, skills to learn, places to discover and explore. We want to sail around the Bahamas, up the coast of the US and in the Med. We want to bicycle through France and Italy, and motorbike through both the US and Europe. We'd like to explore both places by caravan too. Then we really need to get busy and explore the rest of the world - the Far East, Thailand, India, Japan, China, New Zealand, South America and the list goes on and on. We may be able to fit it all in in about 50 years or so!

Fender Covers

When we got the boat, we also got the fenders which went with it. They were old, dingy and grey - and those dirty things were very distracting in my lovely boat photos! While we were at the Southamption Boat Show last year, we found fender 'socks' which could be put on old fenders to make them look better. I spent this morning covering all our fenders and here's a picture of how they turned out. Should have done a before and after, but take it from me they look much, much better!

Churrascaria

Last night we went out for dinner to a churrascaria - La Fogata in Gulfport.

"The Parana region of Brazil and the neighboring Argentina and Paraguay are famous for their churrasco, which is a method of cooking of tender cuts of meat on long steel skewers over a hot grill. At a traditional churrascaria restaurant you are served at your table from the skewer and sliced off by the waiter (called passadors) as much barbequed meat as you like. The waiter holding the skewer is back again and again until you do not stop him." Trip Advisor

We had a great time! They have a very nice salad bar for starters and a good wine list. They give you little red (stop) and green (go) medallions which you flip if you would like them to bring more or pass you by this time. Steve loved the meat feast, I really like the grilled pineapple (with sugar and cinnamon, yummy!) - all the food was great, and we had control over when the courses were served.

(One of the interesting experiences coming back to the US after having been in the UK / Europe is trying to have a leisurely evening out. I know it is the norm here, but I would like to have a drink before dinner, finish eating my salad before my main appears on the table and to ask for the check rather than having it appear with my main.)

La Fogata reminded us of the churrascaria we went to that we very quickly enjoyed one afternoon while waiting for a plane in Chicago.

This was our first relaxing evening out since we got here, we'll be going back to Gulfport!

Sign of the Times

How to Be a Great Cook - Use Great Cookbooks!

Once upon a time, I didn't like to cook - my favourite thing to make was reservations. Then I married Steve, a foodie who could cook. When we were dating, he would make fantastic meals - coq au riesling, chicken in white wine sauce, spicy sausage and pasta, and one that won over Jess, toad in the hole. He made delicious (lovely, yummy) meals and claimed they were easy.

Well, the food was so good, making reservations became less appealing because often the food at home was better than the food in the restaurant. As time went by, I began trying different recipes and began to enjoy cooking myself. Two things really made this cooking thing stick - simple yet gourmet quality recipes and a foodie husband who thoroughly enjoys the end result!

Here's one example of what I'm talking about:

Chicken in White Wine Sauce

6 chicken thighs
1 onion chopped
3 garlic cloves chopped
small package of white (or fancier) mushrooms sliced
1 glass of good white wine
most of a pint of heavy cream
olive oil (for frying)
Bacon, pancetta or salt pork

Sear the outside of the chicken by frying quickly in olive oil (or microwave it for 8-10 minutes and then start frying). In a separate pan, slowly fry onions. When onions become translucent, add in garlic. When garlic is cooked, add in mushrooms. When mushrooms are cooked, add onions, garlic, mushroom mix to seared / microwaved chicken and toss together for a few minutes.

After 'mix' and chicken have had a chance to blend, pour in glass of wine. Bring to a boil then lower temp a bit so it is gently bubbling and cook for about 20 minutes. Slice a few pieces of the chicken to make sure they are cooked through and once they are add about 3/4ths of the pint of cream. Let this 'fergle' on a low boil, uncovered until the cream thickens and the sauce tastes wonderful!

Serve with salad (no dressing, use the lettuce to mop up the sauce), bread and the rest of the white wine (this is why I said good white wine!). Usually makes enough for two meals, serve over pasta the second time around. It's one of the easiest, tastiest meals I've ever had!

My favourite cookbooks that I use for simple, yet gourmet meals are written by Nigel Slater (Real Food) and Jamie Oliver (Italy) plus the Cruising Chef and Cruising Cuisine cookbooks.

Boat is Back!

After being all smartened up, Snowbird is back in the slip. Steve is working through his massive to-do list while I get to go shopping for the bits and pieces we need to have an organised and homey boat. Stuff gets easily scattered around when you're sailing, either through us not putting things away or bounced about by waves. If things have a home, hopefully they will go back home after being used. With only 40ish ft of space, it doesn't take much out to have a rather untidy place (Steve, aka Tidy Head, will be chuckling gleefully when he reads this!).

The interior is a mess! Very dusty and cluttered from the interior repaint / revarnish - which isn't quite complete yet (grrr). Steve's got stuff ripped apart doing bilge pumps and heads so I'm staying well away. We'll have quite a cleaning job on our hands on Monday.

Things I picked up are mainly storagey type stuff - baskets for the shelves, bins for the chart table shelves, containers to keep little things from floating (or flying) around the cabin. Found a fantastic deck bag! What's a deck bag? Everytime I go up on deck I have 'stuff' with me (yes, I'm a stuff person and quite happy that way, thank you!) - camera, video camera, book, suduko, sunscreen, lip balm, water, etc., etc. This stuff can go flying or have to be rapidly and repeatedly picked up and stowed if we're tacking. So I've been looking for a good bag for holding all my stuff and I found it! Great bag with loads of storage for keeping all the bits and pieces I like to have on deck in one place.

After all the busy-ness, we cleaned up and had dinner out on the patio. Temp is mid-70s. November is my favourite time of year in Florida!

Dinner on the Beach

The boat is now back in its slip and we have retrieved everything from our storage locker. The condo looks like a staging facility with everything organised in piles - need on the boat now, need on the boat when Steve is finished tearing it apart, need to sew (this should be interesting!), need to put on the boat when it is clean and need to put on the boat just before we go.

Having done that an evening of relaxation was in order so we heated up dinner, put some wine in a jug and went down to the beach. A balmy evening requiring only light sweaters, perfect for al fresco. Very romantic too - until all the hobgoblins came running by as they were trick or treating and then the kiddies Halloween party kicked into high gear providing our romantic interlude with the background accompanyment of the music from Disney's Beauty and the Beast. It was all in good fun though and the kids were very cute (especially the one dressed as a pumpkin passed out in his stroller on the way home).

What a difference a day - whoops - five days makes! Sunday we were in Windsor all bundled up for the chilly weather (although with the best of company!):

Today - Dinner on the beach while watching the sunset.