Tuesday Oct 27

October 27, Tuesday

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AUNTIE EM!!

The bottom is painted and we managed to get 3 coats on before it rained!  We also got the non-skid on the back deck. Wow, is it ever white! And clean! And I won't let any one walk on it with shoes on!!  I also got the boot top strip painted white so today we can add the blue strip and be done with that.

Rick has to go find the  bearings we need to put the drive back together and he also has to finish the rudders [epoxy the little holes] so I can paint them and then we can put them back on the boat. We might actually be able to launch on the first. Then e have to go to customs to find out if they want us to leave right away or can we actually wait for a weather window. I think as long as we stay on the boat while we are waiting, we're ok.

It's still hot here [between 28-32C] so the afternoons make it hard to work much. We're always looking for something to do on the shady side of the boat. The Pacific hurricane, Patricia, is moving across Texas and is affecting the weather systems here. Although the east wind is persistent across Florida, the winds from the west are starting to hit as well, and both systems are creating a constant swirling wind...as long as it doesn't get too hot to form a tornado, I'm happy to wait until they both clear out! I just wish they were strong enough to kill the bugs! Quentin looks like he has flesh-eating disease because he won't stop scratching! All the redheads and former redheads [old people] in the boat yard are sympathetic. They all feel the effects of the mosquitoes. Of course he would rather suffer than spend the few minutes putting on bug repellent! I have given up offering it.

Oh, and Liz, making him go home at this point would almost be a blessing to him! This is NOT paradise right now. They yard is grimy, dusty, boring and there are no kids to play with. We are trying to get as much done as fast as possible so spending every afternoon at the beach is not an option. He manages to get Internet time by sitting at the office, but I can't watch him every minute or hang out with him all day. We play cards at night or the games that Barb gave us, but...

We picked Joseph up in Indiantown and drove him back to the boat so he could leave his truck there. He and Diane are heading across on Friday to Bimini, and will be there for 3 weeks before they come back, so Joseph can go back to Canada for some stuff. We expect to catch up to him in Bimini...that's our cross-over destination. 

So... time to get some other work done. Will try to post some pics when I get back here to the library... Hope you have a good birthday, Aunt Muriel!! 

P.S. Barb, I get all the comments but I might not reply because I can't do it through the blog.