It’s that time again- the guest room is filling up once more with our winter needs, splayed out on display for constant adjustments every time the doorway is darkened. A little less time at home for me this fall and early winter has meant a bit less organization and pre-planning on my end, but I’m hoping to make huge strides this week (and next, considering it’s my last option!) on the getting-my-boat-*$@!-together front.
One thing that we have done is taken delivery of our new salon cushions. They are button-free (the previous versions had buttons lashing the bolsters, which were not the most comfortable bare-legged backdrop) and crisp and clean, and I’m sure that their slow death marches of family cruising usage will begin immediately, perhaps before they even see the seats upon which they are to lay, thanks to the girls making forts with them where they are currently stacked. Many thanks to Carl at The Sail Shack (https://www.facebook.com/bernardschoolhouse) for a timely and professional job. On a technical note, we opted for mesh on their backs for better ventilation, and the new foam within will be a welcomed change. The last batch felt a bit, er, rotten and disgusting.. to put it nicely.
On the actual Chickadee side of things, Andy flew down to the yard yesterday for a week to prep the ole girl for our arrival. He’ll fly back next week a mere three days before we all shove out in the family roadster, but in the meantime our individual chore lists are considerable.
My list includes finishing up the details of our clerical departure (lists for work, lists for the guardians of our various aspects of our lives- living and otherwise, numerous lists for packing, etc.) all while keeping the children and animals alive, fed, clothed, schooled and activitied (I am grateful to not be focusing too much on the animals’ clothing or schooling, I’ll be the first to admit).
Andy’s list includes adding a starting battery separate from our house bank, replacing our fresh water pump, replacing our raw water pump, rebooting our electrical system (new, higher-output alternator included), and un-messing the mess that is the culmination of ‘what he arrived to find + mess that he’s making while tearing the boat apart to work’ in anticipation of the family arrival next weekend. His list is a doozy with no actual Chickadee comforts for a while, but since his list is much closer to excellent Tex-Mex, I’ll be honest and say that I’m less apt to feel considerable amounts of pity. (Relllllleeeennnooos.)
Florida-based spirits were low yesterday as he tried to recover from a day of a 4am-start travel while simultaneously charging himself up to work in a sweaty, mildewy boat full of rigging and stored parts with the only physical comfort in the form of cushions that were thousands of miles away. The sun shade proved valuable in that in kept the boat cooler for the hot summer days and therefore had likely less damaging affect on bits and pieces below, but the algal blooms of not having great air flow was the key to the decision to not re-enact the same scenario last year. Our poor Chickadee is a bit green.
On the flip side, his first full day was a productive one, and he checked one of the dirty jobs off of his list: sanding and painting the bottom.
Tomorrow he launches, and will begin the electrical fun.
Tomorrow I will continue on in the world of Hamilton and Harry Potter-crazed life in which I currently exist, but with a bit more trip planning thrown into the wee hours. There are curriculums to plan and piles of stuff to be organize- both jobs greatly enhanced by a little Revolutionary War hip hop, if I do say so myself.