5200 In My Hair!

It's been a busy week. The boat goes in a week from Friday and there is much left to do. Jeff installed new engine room blowers and a new VHF antenna on Thursday. We began prepping our “Castine dinghy” for its launch date next week. We have two dinghies, one inflatable which stays on the fly-bridge of aCappella and a 13 foot Boston Whaler that we keep at the Castine Town Dock in the summer. The Whaler allows us to easily cart the dogs, ourselves, and lots of gear across the river to our mooring. Truth be told, it's the dog's favorite boat as we often use it to take them swimming at Indian Bar.

Today we left very early to spend the day at the boat. Our main task for the day was to remove the shrink-wrap and put up the bimini. It has to be completed in a single day as once we remove the shrink-wrap the upper helm is exposed to the elements. Taking off the shrink-wrap, that's kind of like opening a present - it's fun. But putting up the bimini? This is always a frustrating task which tries the marriage. The absolute worst part is putting the anchor light back up. It's a 5 pound pole that I must hold above my head for hours (he claims moments) while Jeff applies 5200 sealant and puts in the screws. To add insult to injury, this year a glob of 5200 landed in my hair! Yes, a thoroughly waterproof, resistant to everything sealant ended up in my hair (on a boat with no water, on a Sunday when nothing around was open). As the wind picked up and dark clouds gathered, we rushed to apply the canvas and miraculously finished before the sky opened up. After a few other minor tasks were finished, we climbed into the car for the nearly 2 hour ride home. We decided to reward ourselves with a DQ Blizzard on the way home. It was great but doesn't help the fact that I still have 5200 sealant in my hair...

Fender Cleaning - It’s Magic!

It’s hard to believe we’ve had aCappella for nearly 6 years! It seems like only yesterday we pulled out of Herrington Harbor on the Chesapeake Bay in dense fog for our first “solo” trip. This was after 2 days of instruction by an onboard captain. My knees were shaking but when we pulled into the Penobscot Bay a couple of weeks later, I felt like quite the salty-mate. We were fortunate to purchase aCappella “practically new” from two very experienced cruisers who had thought of pretty much everything when they outfitted the boat. But now our gear is looking a bit dogged. Ever mindful of keeping our cruising budget down we’ve decided to give our most used items a much needed face lift. Our first target - the fenders. Last year I stumbled on the MagicEraser which I gleefully used in the kitchen, the bathroom, the patio -- I’m pretty sure it is “magic.” Jeff had the idea to try it on our much scuffed up fenders. It only took one evening in front of the TV and they came out beautiful!

Lists, Lists, Lists

OK, so we all have our little quirks. One that Jeff and I share is a passion for lists. Going shopping, make a list. Weekend chores, make a list. Christmas coming, need another list. They’re all over the house, handwritten, printed out, on the computer, and on the mobile phones. Unfortunately, simply making the list isn’t enough - go figure. So we’ve prepared lists of things to get us ready to leave in August. Things to check, things to buy, and projects to complete. In the past we’ve even made a list of our lists! Now we need to get working!!!

She’s Buttoned Up Tight

After winterizing all the systems, aCappella, who is too large for inside storage, needed to be shrink-wrapped to protect her from Maine’s sometimes harsh winters. Journey’s End in Rockland, Maine did a great job padding all the rub spots and ensuring a tight seal. Unfortunately, they miscalculated a bit on the entry door making getting on and off the boat slightly challenging. But hey, being on a boat requires a certain nimbleness and maybe this will keep us prepared for next summer. Yes, she looks lonely but she receives a visit about every other week for a “once over” and a charging of the batteries. We work in a lunch in Rockland so it’s a nice winter diversion.



Fortunately, I regularly practice yoga........

A Sad Day, A Long Winter

Hauling aCappella last fall for a second winter on the hard was a sad day. But we cheered ourselves with thoughts of planning for our 2009-10 winter cruise. We’ve decide to leave our homeport of Castine, Maine in August ‘09 and not return until May ‘10 - our longest cruise yet. The goal: pictures of Dyna swimming in the Bahamas! There is much to do but the winter seemed to stretch out in front of us. It’s now February and, oh my, the time is flying! We thought that reviving our Blog might give us a much needed push. TakingPaws will now begin chronicling the preparations for the next adventure of a boat, a couple, and a couple of dogs.