Getting the gear stowed away...

Made my first pot of coffee for the first time in some six weeks since leaving Dallas... too bad the coffee maker couldn't run on DC current after plugging it into the inverter... had to cart the thing up to the marina offices and plug it into one of the outdoor AC outlets. The effort was nevertheless worth it. Especially since I didn't have to go chase a cup of coffee at Starbucks.

It was nice and relaxing to be able to sip on some coffee while seated in the cockpit contemplating the early morning.

I later got busy sorting through all the stuff I had retrieved from the storage unit back in Ennis. I got motivated once I put on some Bob Marley and UB40 tunes. The tote boxes are worth their weight in gold... pots and pans, canned goods, cleaning items, tools each have their own tote box to go into. Nope... there won't be any cans of rolling about in the bilge if I can help it. I even have a small tote box set aside for my cell phone, wallet, watch and car keys so that they are all in one place.

Drove to good ol' Walmart up in North Fort Myers and purchased a sundry of pantry items... stuff one buys once in a blue moon... olive oil, red wine vinegar, hot sauce, powdered lemonade, dry pasta and beans, rice, seasonings etc. ... couln't find powdered milk in packets.

It's time to get serious about the hardware on the boat... tomorrow will be a good time to perform a thorough inspection of all the wiring... a cursory look shows just too many splices in the wiring throughout the boat. I also need to check out the alcohol stove and make sure that it works. It's way past time that I start cooking my own meals.

Quick trip to Ennis, Texas and back....

July 16, 2010

Made the dreaded drive to Ennis, Texas to collect my personal belongings out of the storage unit that I was renting by the month... also made arrangements for an old friend to claim the furniture... she was only too happy to claim what she described as a winning lottery ticket and I was happy not to have to mess around with the stuff any more. I couldn't have thought of a more appreciative person to give my stuff to.

I loaded up the car with my tools, kitchen ware, photo albums, and an assortment of other personal items. None of that furniture was going to fit onboard the boat.

The drive was a brutal 2,650 mile ordeal in total... all done in 53 hours. Thank goodness for the rest stops along the interstate.

Cleaning the Engine Compartment...

July 13, 2010
Presently tied up at the City of Fort Myers Yacht Basin Marina.

S/V Blondie-Dog is a 28' Cape Dory sailboat purchased some two weeks ago. I spent my first week attempting to get my mindset squared away with living on-board a sailboat once again and resisting the temptation to add A/C powered creature comforts.

Spent the past week performing a thorough cleaning of what was once the engine compartment. The Yanmar diesel was deemed unrepairable and discarded by the boat's previous owner. Nevertheless, left in its wake were rusted bolts, cables, nuts, washers, wiring, and shards of rusted metal.

I must have filled my mop bucket halfway up with rusted crud. A can of engine de-greaser was liberally sprayed throughout the compartment and left to soak awhile and was followed up with a stiff brush and elbow grease.

White vinegar was not effective as a cleanser but the bleach certainly was. A good spraying with the water hose followed soon thereafter and the dockside waste-water pump hose was brought in to siphon all the gray water out of the bilge.

All in all it was a worthwhile cleaning effort.