Waiting in Miami with wind

I flew into Miami from Manchester, NH on Saturday after leaving NYC Friday, kissing Sarah, Yeang and Is good-bye for their visit to grandparents in Malaysia.  I drove the car from Queens to park at home in Exeter.  So complicated and busy.  We are straying from sailing and fast becoming a travel blog.

 Historic sign in the park on the East River.  Part of my 2 x daily 1 hour walks with Is in the stroller.
 Is sitting up in her chair at 3 months!

Isabelle Chng (3 months) and Celia Twombly (8 months), first cousins (Sarah's and Dillon's kids) held by Shelly, Dillon's nanny.

Back to fixing in Miami:  Drew took on the auto-pilot by replacing the rudder position transducer sensor.  Drew in the cockpit locker:

 Mazu supervising on the deck next to the dock.

Later we'll head out into the Biscayne Bay where the wind is okay to calibrate the auto-pilot mechanism so we can continue to wait for favorable winds. 
   Presently there are up to 8-9' waves and a north wind that doesn't equate with a nice enough sail.  They say this weather is for salty sailors, not us.  We are looking for 3-4' waves and south, southeast or southwest winds to push us north.  Our planned route is to stay a bit outside, ideally hop in the Gulf Stream that's about 15 miles out.  It adds a few significant knots onto our speed.  We'll go directly from Miami to Moorehead City just below Cape Hatteras or stop in West Palm Beach on the way for a rest. Go inside at Moorehead City for several days on the ICW which means stopping at night and coming out at Norfolk, VA.  From there head straight for Buzzards Bay another 3 - 4 days.  Then into Mass. Bay to Marblehead.  The whole thing takes about 3 weeks whenever we get going.

ASIDE:  Just a note of thanks to Sarah and Yeang for such a great time taking care of Isabelle for the month of April.  It was nice that they thought about what I might like to do there too.
  One of the fun activities was seeing Freedom Park, a national monument to FDR on Roosevelt Island in the middle of the East River. a short 10 minute drive.  Pix below.  We also rode the tram up over and back over the East River, one subway fare.  We could see straight down each Manhattan avenue north to south.  We also had a nice little reunion at Lisa's (my niece) in Pelham when I drove bookcases out to her place.

 United Nations from Roosevelt Island

 Tram to Manhattan                                                   View down the avenue

Looking north on the East River

Moon over Miami

  

Miami and Queens

First Drew:  he moved the boat to a slip in Dinner Key to escape 90+ degree heat.  (Mazu is much happier with air conditioning since they are plugged in.) Drew had a business retreat with his partner and later took him and his family for a sail even before repairing the auto pilot.  : )  They worked around the thunder showers and didn't go out until 5:00 for a 2.5 hour sail Saturday.  Drew provided a nice sandwich spread in the salon for dinner.  I wanted to be there too.  Mazu is happier in the air conditioning but was shaking when they sailed.  This doesn't bode well for the upcoming sail north.  Even if we sail on the calmer ICW she isn't relaxed. We think it's the sail noise that she doesn't like, but really there is no reason because even if the sails aren't out and it's calm she shakes and pants and never does it on the mooring when the boat pitches and bounces or on bumpy dinghy rides.  Not sure what we'll do next year with her, but we will sail south!

In Queens the month is coming to a close and I have only a few more days with Isabelle and a chance to see the Brooklyn grandkids. 
   The Book of Mormon was outrageously funny.  The writers are the ones who write "South Park" and the music comosed by the Yalies who did "Frozen".  The sets and costumes for all the numbers are just brilliant.  Where does such creativity come from?  Dillon and I were very impressed, better than I thought it would be.  Very funny.
  Last week was full of cleaning up/painting/fixing the condo for a photo shoot since it will be put up for rent.  I must say I was so impressed in New York with the repairmen.  They come the same day when they say they will and fix everything usually the same day.  Workmanship is top notch.  Not so in New Hampshire at all.  I set up repairs several days ahead and sometimes they don't even show up.  It's very difficult to get much accomplished on the house in Exeter without constant calling, reminding, and searching for anyone qualified to do a good job at the level of quality I want.  I know, the population of NH is only 1.2 million and New York is 8.5 million.  This week Yeang flew to LA to find a new place to live and now Sarah and Yeang pack up for Malaysia for the month of May.  I drive back to NH, leave the car, and fly to Miami on Saturday.

 Up on the roof with 3 month old granddaughter, Isabelle Chng looking over the East River to Manhattan.  Crazy hair.  That's not the wind, it stands straight up on its own.

 When Isabelle was introduced to cousins Violet, age 2 and Celia, age 9 months.

New set up for back curtains

As some of you have read we continue to improve and maintain Shawnee.  We added bow thrusters and a full enclosure when we purchased it 2004.  Today the cockpit rear curtains needed the zippers replaced again because of the damaging sun and salt.  [A shop in Coconut Grove did a great job]  The pictures show how changing the placement of the zippers allows us to mount the dinghy engine onto the rail (see engine mount -red top- in the picture) without the curtain being in the way.  It will be easier to use the pulley and raise the dinghy engine onto the rail when we sail off shore. We'll be able to roll up the curtain just where the engine sits and work the other portions of the vinyl independently.  When the full vinyl is rolled up the exit out to the ladder to the dinghy is much wider for loading and unloading.

 When we bought our '99 Island Packet 380 in 2004 we felt like it was fully loaded: a water make, solar panels, wind generator, full navigation with a linx system and radar, SSB communications, below deck remote navigation.  We thought we could be off the grid with a strong wind.  However, we've come to know we still need to run our engine daily to keep up with refrigeration/freezer, 16 hour computer use, VHF and the overall amount of electricity we use.  We've purchased LED lights for everything...tried to reduce consumption.  The solar panels and wind generator can't keep up with how much we use.
So it goes with Shawnee today.

ASIDE:  Meanwhile in NYC my daughter and son-in-law surprised me with a present for taking care of 3 month old Isabelle this month which is a joy for me.  I was shocked:  2 tickets to see "Book of Mormon," one ticket for me and one for my son.    A mother son outing.  Can't wait.  Hurray Broadway. 
  Friday night my niece and I went over to my son's family for dinner.  Saturday morning I drove over to watch my grandson play 6 year olds' basketball in Brooklyn. That afternoon we drove out to Pelham to deliver my daughter's bookcase (she's getting rid of things before she moves to LA)  to my niece, and we had a nice walk along the park and beach there with Isabelle too--79 degrees today!

TOILETS AND BROADWAY

I have to say I really lucked out in NYC.  I received free tickets to "On the Town" a revival by Leonard Bernstein, the musical that brought us "New York, New York" (it's a wonderful town) given to Yeang and Sarah by their neighbors, musicians -  a violinist and french horn player.  Emily, their neighbor was in the pit playing the violin.  They were too tired to go and gave me the tickets.  How wonderful was that?  It was an old fashion feel good song (23 numbers) and dance show. Loved it!

http://onthetownbroadway.com/ 

[Aside:  As I walked into the show there was a massive demonstration protest marching down 42nd Street for $15 minimum wage by hospital, home care, and fast food workers.  It went on for about 30 minutes with large numbers, bands, drums, chants. Hurray.

At the same time Drew said I would have had more fun on the boat taking apart the toilet that decided to stop working.  He found tons of biological growth in the valve and throughout the hoses.  Time for daily vinegar treatments.  Living in the tropics where everything grows more has grown not only on poor Mazu with skin ailments, but also on the hull of the boat that needs monthly scrubs.  Now tropical growth in the toilet!  What next?

When a toilet doesn't flush it's not fun.














Mazu was a big help especially afterward with a kiss.

Drew is on the boat. I'm in NYC

I have a new page, Boat Fixes on the top of the blog. I'll be editing this page after Drew looks it over.  [I am writing while Isabelle naps (no pix - respecting Mom's request because she doesn't want her on Facebook or all over the Internet.  Good idea.)]

  So the boat fix page may interest others since our boat is a 1999 Island Packet 380, very seaworthy and stable.  We love it.  Now that it's 16 years old we have made some larger replacements to keep her like new.  Shawnee is loaded, as they say, with a water maker, new sails, solar panels, wind generator, frig and freezer, large 2 person shower and head, microwave, new dinghy, bow thruster, and she is wonderful to live aboard.  It is amazing how long boats, like great houses, continue in the water.  We have seen and boarded beautifully restored and maintained 40 + year old boats.
  One discussion Drew and I have is about the interior teak.  As it ages it darkens like many woods.  Drew says it's dirt.  I say it's age.  What does everyone else think?  We clean with Kutters and use Amazon teak oil on it.
  On the exterior we just had our teak bright work completed last summer.  It is not holding up.  We switched from using Bristol Finish to a new solution.  I'd go back to the acrylic hard finish of Bristol Finish even though if it cracks and water seeps under it it can lift.  Catching it yearly with small spot refinishing prevents having to do the whole boat all at once. The finish never scratches (we have Mazu aboard with nails) and looks beautiful.  We only did touch ups for 11 years.  This new finish is wearing away in less than a year.  Hmmm.  Expensive but we may have it redone...again.

Weather has been great in Miami with daily temps about 80; at night around 70.  Drew has been entertained by others in the mooring field; seder dinner with new friends,  and of course Mazu is there for companionship.

Help monarch butterflies - plant milkweed ... and life on Shawnee

http://www.fws.gov/midwest/monarch/ 

Must support the Monarch butterfly that is dwindling away because of loss of habitat.  The government is not reacting as they did with Silent Spring, Rachel Carson's mind changing book that brought back the American eagle from near extinction by banning DDT use.  This amazing butterfly may be extinct in the next 40 years since the population has dropped 97% in 15 years.  The habitat is mostly affected by Monsanto GMO tolerant seeds so farmers can use roundup everywhere to kill weeds.  It wiped out milkweed, the sole food source for monarch caterpillars as they migrate to and from Mexico each year.

Funny to see a French Horn in a dinghy.  Thought of daughter, Sarah, who plays (as did my brother and father.)

Drew changed the oil.  It takes a few hours and needs to be done about every 150 engine hours, mess.

Drew met a man in the mooring office with two tennis rackets and now I can play tennis with them 3 days a week!
   

I'm sewing the leather cover back onto the wheel at the helm where it was falling off after 15 years because the cotton thread is disintegrating.  The new thread is not synthetic but it's wax covered, should last another 15 years.  It's slow going.

  Mazu is completely shaved now and receiving baths and getting dumped in the therapeutic salt water every other day.  She is a trooper and resilient.
More anon.
The blog will stop soon when I drive up to NYC to take care of Isabelle for 5 weeks.  Drew will stay on the boat continuing to work, fix and enjoy the wonderful warm weather.

What can happen on a mooring? Yikes, live and learn!

Yesterday, St Patrick's Day we drove to Marathon, Boot Key in THE Keys, FL (2 hours south) to have a wonderful corn beef and cabbage St. Patrick's Day dinner with Steve and Merry and friends on moored Alobar (yes, after the character in Jitterbug Perfume by Tom Robbins.), a beautiful 41' Lord Nelson sailboat.  Tons of beautiful old teak in the salon and on topside.  Blue skies and friendly fun loving folks.  Had a great time.

Steve wore his authentic kilt.





















It was such a great Irish day with some step dancing by relatives to celebrate too.

Watched a regatta of 40 sailboats coast in from a race with colorful spinnakers out on all of them.

As you can see the water is not the clearest here.  We can only make water with our Spectra water maker at high tide and clean our filters daily or change to new ones often.  Not like New England with deep constantly changing water with the big deep water and higher tides.  I'd say you can see your hand about 3' deep maybe.  I still did try to swim with the new ladder, but it didn't work -- waaay too cheap.  Drew couldn't haul himself up either.  The weather continues to stay around 80 but the winds are a-blowin' 20 most days.

Time for a return to the store...again.  This cost $40.  I think I need the solid one that costs about $150 and hangs off the side.  We have finally figured out a way to set the dinghy up with the stern ladder down that allows swimming by scooching under the dinghy,  down the swim ladder, or jumping off the swim platform.  The swim ladder is there to get back on.

Yikes, for Mazu will not be starring in any more happy dance videos soon.  She has come down with everything the tropics seem to offer.  Where there is no lyme disease here there are bugs and fungus galore that run rampant in the warm, humid conditions.  She contracted fleas that are resistant to her Advantix II monthly dose.  We need to not only treat her with a monthly pill that killed the fleas instantaneously, but we have to fumigate the boat and wash all of our clothes -- ALL, throw out her dog bed and the rugs.  We did find a super vet service, Banfield Pet Hospital, that is in Pet Smart Stores around the country. With all she has and our traveling, we signed up as a member to get a "discount."  She also has ringworm that required her to be shaved.  It is supposed to be very contagious, but we have not gotten it after she's apparently had it for weeks.  I just didn't know the stronger thing to treat her with.  The treatment is baths 3X a week with special shampoo for 6 months or until her fur grows back.  She has an ear infection that is caused by wet conditions and humid climate.  After the  dog attack she is a mess.  Fortunately her mood is still very upbeat, but we know she can't feel great with all this going on.  I think the immediate remedy of destroying the fleas made her feel much better.
But her cuddling she loves to do is not going to happen for a while.  Since I am leaving in a week for NYC Drew is going to be left with administering all the meds.

Fun on the mooring is taking out the 77 key piano Drew got me for Christmas.  Picture of that later.

We attended the orchid festival at David Fairchild Botanical Gardens in Coral Gables.  To get there we drove one of the prettiest streets in America, Old Cutler Road, that is covered over like a tunnel with Banyon trees. [Talked about it last year too.] At the same time we experienced an amazing Dale Chihuly glass blower exhibit throughout the grounds.  Here is some of what we saw.

More Chihuilly

And then we came upon this fuzzy sort of giant seed or fruit hanging from a palm tree.

I have no idea what it is. Research time.
Presently reading Pocketful of Names by Coomer,  about an 81 year old uncle lobstering with a 19 year old niece art student.  Really quite good. Set in coastal Maine - that alone makes the setting great.