Renaming Celebration

As some of you noticed I did not post anything to the blog yesterday.  A couple of days ago I had some emergency dental work done.  I could not have any solid food for 24 hours.  No food makes Patti a very grumpy, bitchy girl.  I am all set now, thank you very much.

Yesterday there was a ceremony to rename Dick and Deb's Whitby 42 Ketch.  They are on C-Dock right across from us.  The name when they purchased the boat was Heather Anne, which is pretty but meant nothing to them at all.  It is said that if you just rename a boat one or all of the Sea Gods will not be happy.  There are quite a few things you need to do, and there are many different ceremonies on the Internet.  Deb and Dick chose one that included C-Dock and a few others.  First Dick read and we toasted with champagne.

Then it was time for Deb to let Journey To... and the gods have their drink.

Then it was time for C-Dock to party (like we need an excuse).  Ruby's job was to guard the bucket of champagne.

The boys from Panache were in Isle of Hope to record some music, so they took some time to attend the ceremony.  There were also some new people.  We all had a great time.

Happy Easter Everyone!!

:-)  Patti and Bill

Photos from Mass. to Conn.

Like my post yesterday, there were pictures I took but did not post in a blog.  Yesterdays were before the purchase of Enigma.  Below are a few that I took from the way from where we purchased her in Newburyport, Mass. to New London CT.  I wish I had taken pictures of the few time we had stayed in Newburyport.  If you ever have a chance I would suggest you stay downtown there. It is a very quaint New England town with many places to eat, shop and on cobblestone streets.  The center has many goings on from music, we even heard a women playing a harp, to yo-yo acts and clowns.  It is walking distance to the riverfront park that has a few restaurants with patios overlooking the boats and marina.  As we left I turned and took this picture of the mooring field that was Enigma's home on the Merrimack River.

Salem Mass. is really a nice place to visit.  We stayed two days there to let a front go through.  The harbor was nice.

We also went through the Cape Cod Canal.  It was very wide and we did not run into that much traffic.

It was getting dark and the wind was kicking up so we sailed into Mettapoisettet.

Next stop was Jamestown.  The Jamestown Bridge is gorgeous at night.

Now in the Thames River we are almost home in CT,  Ledge Light is a very calming and familiar site.

Once we are docked and securely tied, Bill can finally relax with a good book and a glass of wine.





Pictures from the Past

When I started this blog in the beginning of March I did very quick paragraphs with no pictures.  None until the two weeks in Charleston post.  Mostly because I wanted to get a few posts out there and some because I was trying to figure out how to easily get the pictures from my phone to the laptop.  I now take most of my pictures with my small point and shoot Nikon Coolpix.  Anyhow here are some pics of the past when we first started sailing.

This is Lady Di, our first sailboat.  Well sailboat with sleeping quarters, galley and such.  She is a Pearson 30.

We sailed her for about 10 years in New England.  We had her hauled out every winter and put back in sometime in the early spring. This means she spent Christmas on the hard in the boatyard.  I would visit her a few times and Bill would put a wreath for decoration. 

Everyone loved Lady Di.  Even this momma duck who decided to move into the cockpit one spring. We were not there when the eggs hatched but someone on another boat was and helped her get the ducklings into the water.


                               

Block Island, Rhode Island was one of our favorite destinations.

This is one of my favorite pictures.  We bought and planted this weeping cherry tree to bury the ashes of all of the dogs we rescued under.  When in bloom this tree is gorgeous.  There are some things I do miss not living in the home on land.  This is one of them.

Bill's best friend Peter purchased Lady Di when we bought Enigma.

Then begins the next chapter of our adventure.

:-)  /|)

When it Rains, it Pours

Yesterday I needed to take a trip to the mall.  Bill hates malls, but I only needed to go to Barnes and Noble to buy my Nook Simple Touch e-reader.  They have an entrance from the outside and I didn't take long at all.  Besides Bill loves to read so browsing while I got everything was a no brainer for him.  While there we decided to try the new (well it's a chain but new in the mall) Mexican restaurant, La Parrilla.  Since it was only a few places to the right we went into the mall, took a turn and there it was.  Only one door and that was the emergency exit.  What?  We had to go straight out the main doors and go in from the outside.  Who on earth created this mall?  We found a few things like that in this mall.  Like that saying "You can't get there from here".  Anyway, we won't be going back to that place.  Food and drinks were not good.  If I go into a Mexican restaurant at least the Margarita should be good.  It was so sour I hurt my throat.

Back at the Marina we went up to the pavilion for company.  Then it began to pour.  One thing I did notice in Georgia, it doesn't just rain.  Sometimes it may sprinkle, but then it pours.  And Lightning and Thunder.  Bright and loud.  Amazing thing too was we would look all around the pavilion.  Clear skies all around.  It was like something out of a movie.  Only pouring rain was over us.  There was a break so Sammy and the two German Co-Eds started to go down the ramp.  Sammy was taking them out on a small tour one last time.

Then a streak of lightening and a loud clap of thunder.  Guess that trip got thwarted.

Pam's flight was due to come in soon so we kept the dogs in the pavilion to await their arrival.  Bill told them that their Daddy was gonna bring them a big surprise.

Ruby then preoccupied herself with an empty box she stole from Gene.

Then Pam came home.  Pat and I tried to hold them in the corner until Pam got into the main pavilion but that didn't happen.  She barely got through the door when she was attacked with love and slobbery kisses.

Well, less than two weeks from now we will be leaving this paradise for another.  Just a little further south.

:-)  /|)

Yeah, the Jib Is On!

As most cruisers know, there are constantly things to fix and things to upgrade on your vessel.  Some expected and some unexpected. One thing that we did not expect was our foresail ripping.  This happened in North Carolina when suddenly there were very strong winds and high seas in the Albemarle Sound. Even though we had secured the fenders two of them broke loose and fell over.  When we turned to retrieve them while bringing in the sail it caught and the sheets tangled, causing a tear in the sail.  After taking it down and looking at it, we did some pricing on new and used sails.  The decision was made to see if it could be fixed.  The sail maker used by Isle of Hope (yes, we waited that long,  not much sailing in the ICW) fixed it for us.  Then it sat, in it's nice tight little package on our bow for 3 months.  Mostly because it was either too windy to put it on or if there was no wind the gnats were out in abundance.  Bill recruited Dave from Drift Away to help.  Our Pearson 30 had a CDI Furling system, but Enigma has a Hood Furler that we had no experience with.  It did not take them long to attach and hoist the sail.  Dave was at the bow for the main connection.

Bill was midship to straighten the lines and hoist it up.

Then up and out it went.

Job well done guys!!  Time for the victory beers.

Three more weeks for St. Augustine.  Just minor stuff now.  An oil change and have a diver clean the bottom.

:-)  /|)
Patti and Bill

Baubles, Buttons and Beads

Right off I know most guys will not even be interested in this post.  Why?  It is my hobby of beaded jewelry.  Everyone needs a hobby to keep their mind busy and out of trouble.  Or to avert themselves from thinking about all of the repairs or updates that need to be done on the boat. I got started on this back when I was still working at ING.  My manager was making some awesome pieces and she even repaired one of mine.  She gave me 2 tools and some beads to practice with.  So then I went out and bought a basic 'how to' book.  I was hooked.  It is not all that easy.  Well, basic stringing can be but putting on the clasps can be tricky.  For example, my first piece was intended to be a long necklace, then it became a shorter necklace, then a choker.  In the end I had a pretty bracelet.

I practiced, read the book and watched youtube.  I got myself an assortment of tools like different kinds of pliers and cutters.

My favorite thing is something Bill bought me so I could stop putting the wires in my teeth or dropping a string of beads only to have some fall on the floor.  Stepping barefoot on seadbeads is not fun. Just ask Bill.  This is the Helping Hand with Magnifying Lens.

I am sure there can be many, many other uses for this handy item.   The two clips and the magnifying lens can be adjusted to many different positions.
I do make some earrings and bracelets, but my favorite things are creating necklaces.  Some with all beads and maybe a pendant.  Like this one I made for my sister.

Some with chains.  My niece wanted turquoise.

My other niece likes leather/suede.

I made this choker from beads and buttons.  One of my favorites.

And that is what I do to relieve stress or boredom.

;-)   /)

And the Search Goes On

Sometimes the things in life that we take for granted in one part of the country just is not so in other parts.  Simple things that we thought were simple we just cannot find here.  The three main ones for us are Italian food, Chinese food and Pizza.  Everyone here has their favorites, but so far we just have not found ours.  Maybe because we are from a small town in Connecticut and could find all of them within a two mile radius from our home.  Let's start with Chinese food.

We categorize this in two parts really.  A nice restaurant where you can get a nice meal.  It usually starts with the staff bringing you a pot of tea and ending with a fortune cookie.  The staff, cooks and owner of these establishments are of Asian decent, so they do know how to cook and serve the food.  Second is the take-out only places.  Again the staff, cooks and owners are of Asian decent.  See the pattern here?  Well, since we have hit the southern coast line we have not found any.  Many locals tell us they know the best place.  It just never pans out (no pun intended).  So if you know of any place from the Savannah to St. Augustine please let us know.

On to Italian food.  We really thought that this would be a no brainer.  Boy were we wrong.  It seems that everyone wants to what I call "gourmet up" the food.  Since Charleston, South Carolina I have been wanting lasagna.  Not too picky here.  It can be veggie, sausage, or just cheeses.  They either way over cook the noodles or they were almost raw.  Like crispy raw.  And the sauce, I just can't go there.  Well here in Isle of Hope I did hit the jackpot.  The only thing is it was home made by Pam on Drift Away for our Pot Luck dinner.  Bill is looking for something much simpler.  Spaghetti and Meatballs.  Usually it is the same issue.  The sauce.  He thought he finally found a place.  We went on a recommendation from a few local people.  He was so hopeful when the dipping sauce for the bread sticks was a good marinara sauce.  Out came his pasta and......no marinara....chopped, cooked tomatoes.

This brings me to pizza.  We like a thicker crust pizza.  It doesn't need to be deep dish, just not so thin that if you cut it you also cut the cardboard box.  If you go for New York style, you should still be able to hold and fold it to put in your mouth.  There is always Domino's and Papa John's to fall back on, but still not the greatest.  We came close with Marco's.  Not too bad.  Yesterday, since it wasn't great weather, Gene, Dave, Bill and I decided to try pizza.  We had seen the building the day before for Godfather Pizza.  It was an instint hit.  Just thick enough, good sauce, good crust. Dave's dogs Ruby and Chevy seemed to enjoy the crust too.

If anyone knows of any places we should try please let us know.  Our next stop in a few eeks, we hope, will be St. Augustine.