Week 8

Saturday, February 25, 3017

Goodbye Loafs and Fishes!

At the crack of 900, Tom was ready for assistance at the ramp. With Tom at the helm, Anna Marie and I helped to get the boat on the trailer. It took some doing and repositioning the trailer, but we managed to accomplish the task. We bid farewell to our new friend and headed off for a walk to the flea market at the city marina. Tom readied the boat for over-the-road hauling before he hit the highway. We watched him leave Blackfin, heading north on US 1.

The day was already hot. We made a beeline for the point, stopping at the boat for a couple cold beverages. As usual, there was a little breeze at the point. In only ten minutes under the shade of the tiki, the breeze cooled us right down! After another ten minutes, we had to get some sun to warm up a bit.

We spent the rest of the day hanging out at the marina and swapping stories with the other boaters,

Sunday, February 26, 2017

Goodbye Gary and Carol!

In the AM, we attended to several little boat chores. First was tightening the wheel. That process went well. I found the "key" was upside down. After tightening, it felt more solid, but still had a very slight bit of play. I think the autopilot is the culprit. One day, when I replace the autopilot with one that will actually steer the boat, I remove the old unit and take out the remaining slop.

I then installed the fuse for the solar panel, but I won't wire it until we get home. As part of that project, I moved the autohelm compass to a location further away from the batteries. Maybe it will work better?

In the late afternoon, we went to the concert in Key Colony Beach. Island Time performed and we enjoyed the show. We met Gary and Carol. They graciously gave us their tickets for tomorrow's piano concert at the San Pablo church. The program begins with the Moonlight Sonata and includes works be Chopin, Rochmanoff, and Stravinsky. It should be great.

We returned to the Hurricane for pizza and to listen to Dan Sullivan who was playing on the back porch. We like his style and despite the inebriated members of the audience, we enjoyed listening to him.

Back at the boat, we followed along with the Performances during the Oscars.

Monday, February 27, 2017

A Piano Concert by Fred Moyer!

We did something different today; we hung out at the pool for an hour or so, and even went in for a dip. While there, we met some folks from Virginia Beach. 

After lunch I worked on a small boat project, finishing the relocation of the autohelm compass. I also replaced some of the screws in step locker by the back door. 

After dinner, we headed off to the local Catholic Church for a FLKCA piano concert by Fred Moyer (http://www.frederickmoyer.com). He is super talented and very entertaining. His rendition of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata was superb as was his performance of Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto 2. Mr. Moyer's program was exceptional as was his performance.

Fred played on a Steinway and Sons Concert Grand Piano. Of note, it was announced that he had recently received a notice of approval for a patent for the system he developed whereby the audience can see his hands as he plays. It really enhances the performance and gives one a great appreciation for the technique and technical difficulty of the music he plays.

Tuesday, February 28, 2017

Exodus!

What a morning! David & Marsha Kennedy and Shelly & Allan Easton attended to their final tasks and departed this morning. Gary and Carol Kramer picked up their boat and they were off. In the last week, those six plus Jim & Lisa Favor and Tom have left. It makes me wonder if we're staying too long! 

Out on the point, a thirty something foot log open sailing vessel anchored out last night. This morning we counted nine or ten people on board. A peep through binoculars showed the boat name Sally M, an Outward Bound program vessel. We watched them raise the mizzenmast, then stand around in the hot sun apparently taking in all the instructor had to say. 

After lunch, we worked on the wiring for the power winch that pulls the boat onto the trailer. All the connections were made and successfully tested. I just have to tape them to prevent water from entering.

We're still waiting on the bolt for the trailer brake, but we purchased the brake fluid a couple days ago.

After completing the power winch work, we spent an hour or so at the pool. We were both really hot from working in the bright sunlight. The pool water was warm. It might have been hotter than the air temperature. After a few minutes we got out, sat on a chaise and within seconds, we were both chilly! We sat and talked with the assembled folks until we were too chilly to stay.

It was incredible that we cooled off so much in such a short period. 

Wednesday, March 1, 2017

Overnight Rain?

We haven't had much rain since we've been here, but we had some last night. It might have lasted ten minutes or so. Accompanying the shower was a brief heavy downpour that lasted for a couple minutes. Dawn broke with a mix of clouds and sun. The high temperature is supposed to make it into the mid 80d. The wind is supposed to be 10 to 15 knots out of the WNW. It's shaping up to be a typical weather day here in paradise.

The mix of clouds and sun soon gave way to a bright, sunny, blue sky. It didn't last long. A dark cloud moved in and gave us another shower. It lasted all of ten minutes.

We seem to have completed all the boat projects we have for now. We're still waiting for the bolt so we can get the trailer brakes up and working.

It's Wednesday, and that means Bocce Ball at the Community Park. We won another game. I sat out the second game so Sue (Dances Down Wind) could play. Bocce is still fun, but not as much fun as with Dee and Lee (About Time). Alas, they swallowed the hook and have become total landlubbers.

Our Social Director (Anna Marie) informed me that we missed the Island Grass Festival by two weeks. I was looking forward to going to it and this evening I asked when it was. Too bad. It sounded like an entertaining lineup.

Thursday, March 2, 2017

Trailer Brake Line Bolt!

The trailer brake line bolt arrived today. It needed an O ring so Anna Marie walked to Home Depot to get one while I cleaned the gunk out of the housing. In no time, the bolt was installed. Anna Marie maned the brake fluid pump while I bled the lines at each fitting. All went well except no fluid came out of the left rear brake and the upper bleed valve is knurled and I couldn't loosen it. No fluid came out of the lower bleed valve. Later in the day, I worked on the upper valve to no avail. I suspect there is a blockage with that brake assembly or hose.

It was hot again so we spent some time at the pool.

Anna Marie walked to the Keys Fishery to get some lobster tails which we cooked on the grill along with baked potatoes and zucchini. It was another good meat. This is the second time we had this meal. The last time was to celebrate Tom's final evening in Marathon for this year.

Friday, March 3, 2017

The Bee Gees Tribute!

Staying Alive - One Night with the Bee Gee's was a great show! With six performers on stage, a three piece band (guitar, bass and drums) and guys who looked and sounded like Robin, Maurice and Barry Gibb. They even did two Andy Gibb songs. That guy who sang Andy's and Barry's parts was unbelievable. If you closed your eyes, you would swear that it was them. 

The music was strong and the performance outstanding. The rolled from one song to the next with little banter. As the evening progressed, they encouraged the crowd to sing along, which we did! Imagine singing along to disco music. I never would have thought it. Then things got even more heated when the audience was enticed to dance. The whole place was standing and bopping in the aisles. It was a Most memorable evening.

We hitched up the trailer to test the brakes, but I'm still not sure they're working properly. We decided to take it to the trailer repair shop at 25th Street to have them bleed the brakes. It was supposed to be done after lunch, but the fell behind, so it'll be done first thing tomorrow morning.

We now have a total of five Ranger Tugs in the marina, three 27 and two 25 footers. They are very nice boats. Roam, an older (2008) 25, has been all over the country. They're going to Cuba from here. Illusion, a 27, is a nice pale green color and Tug O My Heart is our favorite name.