Thursday, 20 July 2017 - Wow! I got a real eye-opener today! I called my insurance company to tell them the address on my policy needed to be changed because I am no longer at the marina they had listed and they raised my over rate by 115% above what I paid last year! Last year $2546 - this year $5467. Yikes! For that it's tempting to sail back north.
                  I put a second coat of Cetol on the cap rail and toe rail on the boat today. There was absolutely no wind, which made it easy to do the portion of the painting that needed to be done from the dinghy, but while on board, it sure was hot. I'm glad the second coat went on faster than the first, only about 4 1/2 hours today.
                  Something happened onboard today that I totally do not understand. Last evening, in my hurry to get to the movie on time, I didn't charge the batteries up as high as I usually do, so this morning when I got up, the batteries were down to a 48% charge. I don't like for them to get that low so I immediately started the generator and charged them up to about 66%. I assumed that would be enough to last throughout the day, even without and wind. Sure enough, there was very little breeze today, not enough to even turn the wind charger, much less generate enough electricity to charge the batteries. That meant that the solar charger would have to keep up. Without the wind charger running that's about all the solar can do, keep up, not top off the batteries, especially when the batteries are that low to start off. Amazingly, this afternoon when I quit painting, the battery monitor indicated that the batteries were at 100% charge. From past experience, that shouldn't happen, especially since the sun was in and out of the clouds today. One of the mysteries of boat life, I suppose...and I'm not complaining. I wish it only took the solar OR the wind generator to keep the batteries charged, no both. I hope it happens again tomorrow. It's 9:30 pm and the batteries are at 93% charge without running the generator this evening, that's amazing! By now they are usually down to about 65% and I need to have them up at about 75% to run the refrigeration through the night. Miracles do happen, I guess.

Friday, 21 July - I put a third coat of Cetol on the cap rail and toe rail on the boat today.

Saturday, 22 July - Washing clothes on shore took up most of my afternoon, then had dinner at the Mexican restaurant that I had intended on dining at on Mother's birthday, el Cinco de Mayo. They had been closed when I got there and they are slightly out of the way for most things I do ashore, so I hadn't visited there since. Their enchiladas were "okay", their salsa a little runny, and their margarita good but a little pricey. They don't even come close to El Chihuahua in Salt Lake City, but it was still nice to dine on Mexican food. I hadn't had any since I left Ft. Myers Beach. There are several Cuban diners here, but this is the only Mexican restaurant that I know of.
                  I also reattached the port oarlock on the dinghy today. I hope it stays attached this time. It's amazing how important a small item like that becomes when you run out of gas or the motor won't start on the dinghy, and two oars have to be five or six times as efficient as one used as a paddle.

Sunday, 22 July - Today I tackled the wood on the gratings on the large gabled hatch covers on the foredeck by removing them, sanding them and applying one coat of Cetol. This evening I'll test out the adhesion on the oarlock that I re-attached yesterday as I go over to Dockside for their open mic night entertainment after I have dinner. As usual, the 99 year old comic/trumpet player was there with his same old jokes. He also said he used to play trumpet in Nelson Riddle's orchestra and with another big name band, but he couldn't remember the name of the other. At ninety nine, I think he's doing great to remember the jokes. That's better than I'll do at that age, I'm sure.

Monday, 23 July - Hatch cover gratings got a second coat of Cetol and all six hand holds on the foredeck and other trim got a first coat, plus, since I had just a little Cetol left in the quart can, I put a fourth coat on the first ten feet of the cap rail at the bow. That section of the boat gets the worst treatment since that's where the most salt spray comes aboard while sailing. Last night at Dockside I told Liz and Jan that I'd meet them at The Hurricane tonight for pizza and dancing to Fiddle Rock, so I'd better get cleaned up.

Tuesday, 24 July - Hatch cover gratings received their third and final coat of Cetol today and a second coat for the hand holds and trim on the foredeck, then I put a coat on the pin rails and belaying pins.
                  I had wanted the Coast Guard Auxiliary to do a safety inspection of my boat and they finally came today. I knew it would pass with flying colors because they had given me a full list of requirements a few weeks back and I had made sure everything met the standard. Actually, the only thing I did was buy an electronic "flair" that they suggest. I'm surprised that it qualifies as a flair. It is merely a floating, waterproof strobe light that blinks out SOS. It has a tiny stroboscopic tube that only puts out 75 lumens. A standard, handheld flair puts out about 700 lumens for about 3 minutes, and aerial flares put out several thousand lumens, but for only about 7 seconds. Actually, the only reason I got it is that the electronic "flair" has no expiration date on it, whereas the others outdate in about three years and are expensive to replace time after time.
                  Regardless, now I am perpetually in compliance with an electronic strobe and with extra handheld flares, aerial flares in 12ga. and 25mm, and aerial parachute flares in 25mm with two types of Very pistol...a regular fireworks barge! I hope I never have to use any of them.

Wednesday, 25 July - I put one final coat of Cetol on the hand rails and trim today and did some touch-up work on the pin rails, which were in pretty good shape to start with, having only a few places where the Cetol was worn through by the lines attached to them. I had planned on putting another coat on the belaying pins, but for some strange reason, one of the ten wasn't dry yet, so I'll let them dry another day.
                  Catching water off the top of the bimini is proving to be more difficult than I had imagined. Even though I have a great radar app on my iPhone, many of the rain storms can't be tracked and predicted because they literally form on top of me here in Marathon. If I'm below decks, many times I don't know it's going to rain until I literally hear the raindrops on the deck, then it's a race to close up the hatches before everything below decks gets wet. I don't like to leave the tubing for the catchment system installed all the time because the sun will make the vinyl tubes get stiff and brittle, so I pull them in when not in use. The storms that we've been getting have been of such short duration that by the time I have closed the hatches, let the bimini rinse off with the start of a squall and redeployed the tubes, the squall is all but over. Then I need to open the hatches again as soon as the sun comes back out or swelter in the humid heat. This morning they were predicting that by 3 o'clock, the temperature would be around 92°F. and about 91% humidity with a heat factor making it feel like 107°F., but thank God, it didn't feel that bad; it's only 85°F. and feels like 102. Actually, right after the squall came through, the wind died down and it felt pretty hot, but now the breeze is back up to about 6 or 8 mph, so it's not so bad.
                  I was a bit surprised today to see a large porpoise surface right next to the boat today as I was on the foredeck painting, then, within about a minute or two an enormous manatee surfaced right in the same spot, although headed in a different direction.
                  I think I'll head in and see a movie at the library this evening - it's air conditioned!

            Until next time.
                        "Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming "Wow! What a Ride!" - Hunter S. Thompson

                                          Rick