Sent this out 11/20/2013

OK, I sent this out on 11/20...

I am sitting at Pickles, a local deli, eating banana bread and drinking coffee and messing with internet. WiFi at last!

Waking in the morning here is quite nice, although locals tell me they are darned cold. I did not wear long johns last night and had to go below to stay warm around 2am. I'm guessing the temperature was around 75. Blanket? I don't need no blanket!

All night the feral roosters crow to each other: "these are MY hens!". Occasionally a burro brays loudly or a truck makes its way along the shore road. And the clang of wires in my mast is a constant (note to self: find solution!)(note: in spring of 2016 I finally found that the cables should have been run in a conduit, but were not. When I replace the masthead in fall of 2016 I will handle this).

Large fish occasionally make correspondingly large splashes; although it could be rays as they make a lot of noise for their size. As I sat and read last night by headlamp, SOMETHING made a lot of noise for about a minute. Makes one wonder about the advisability of swimming, but I'll still do it as needed....and the water feels great.

Then, around 5:00, the sky lightens and the clouds turn pink and silver and gray. Very nice.

Lots of work is needed on boat, mostly easy and time consuming: re-bed all hardware on deck to stop leaks, replace a lot of lines (running rigging), replace life lines, deal with plumbing leaks, fix electrical system, clean and paint bottom, lots of refinishing, repair floor and various drawers, scrub and polish everything. Like a neglected home, the work is endless and I have moments when I want to just drop it and say "next boat!".

But being lulled to sleep by water sounds and gentle rocking, swimming over to the Peter's floating bar next door, and doing yoga on deck in the moonlight is really pretty darned nice.

 And I love the feeling that I am going to make it all my own, that I will really know every bit of the boat and feel comfortable with it.