Thursday, October 13.
Culture shock -- back on the boat full time (except no cooking yet -- the rented car is for finding restaurants!).
Day 1 is always about the basics ... cleaning, cleaning and more cleaning. Vinegar is a boater's best friend because it does such a suburb job on cleaning fiberglass and canvas, it's cheap, available in large quantities, and the smell dissipates quickly. After wiping down all surfaces inside and out, we set to work on putting up the canvas in the cockpit. It's sunny and over 80degrees today, so some shade from the dodger and bimini will be helpful. But first, this is also a good time to polish all the stainless steel that holds up the canvas ... no matter how ofter the stainless is cleaned, there is always rust by the next time you look.
It took us all day to get the inside cabin cleared of the supplies we stored inside while off the boat. We left Maja stripped of all her sails, cockpit canvas, deck jugs, dinghy, etc., and all that stuff had to go somewhere inside! Add to that all the goodies we brought back with us, and I spent the better part of the afternoon moving piles from one spot to another in an attempt to get the berths ready for sleeping. Good thing we are not trying to cook for ourselves as the counters are piled high with stuff that I take on faith will eventually find a home someplace on the boat.
Maneuvering and unpacking in such a small space has it frustrations because you are invariably either looking for something that is on the bottom of a pile OR you are trying to put something away but there is a pile of more stuff in front of where you want to go! Each item you pick up, you try to find a home for, but when that involves moving 6 other things, you end up placing it on the top of a convenient pile!
Green Cove Springs Marina is not spiffy ... it's what we like to call a "working marina" ... but it's got the basics -- a nice office, bathroom and laundry, Internet and TV, and friendly people. It has a limited number of slips along the bulkhead (none of which are deep enough for our boat) and a few mooring balls, so most boaters come here to use the work yard or to put their boat in long-term storage.
Friday and Saturday (10/14-15)
Rinse and repeat. Small space but lots of projects!
Dave, the guy who's going to sand and paint the bottom of the boat, will not be able to start until Sunday. Another delay, but we've got lots to keep us busy.
Ah, yes! The malfunctioning toilet. I remember you.
I've read that rebuilding the toilet is an annual thing ..
We knew the toilet rebuild was coming. We had nursed the toilet through our last 2 months in the Bahamas, and getting that baby to work properly again was a high priority. Step-by-step, cleaning every piece, replacing new parts, methodical and thorough, this project kept Dan busy for 2 days. And I'm very happy to report that it works better than it ever did ... EVER. Proving once again that no one does better work on a boat than the captain (or at least our Captain Dan!).. Hopefully, this rebuild will last for a good long while, but I'm ordering another kit today!
The weather is delightful -- 75deg, light breeze -- the type of conditions you hope for when polishing the hull. The last time I did this, I distinctly remember the sweat running down my forehead into my eyes as I worked from the dinghy. Much easier to do with the boat out of the water!
Everyone in the yard is working on their boats so it's a lesson in a variety of repair projects. Watching the people who are sanding their own boats makes me very glad that we are paying someone to do that. What a yucky job. It's toxic dust so you have to wear a plastic suit from head to toe and a mask .... eck! Fortunately, we are at the far end of the yard and no one is sanding close by.
Witnessing the sanding process convinced us that this was a good time to go visit Dan's mom, Jeann, in Tarpon Springs FL! On Sunday, we'll close up the boat as best we can and then get outta dodge for a few days .... till the dust settles (excuse the pun!).
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