Wednesday, 28 March 2018 - I picked up a connector for the dinghy's air pump this morning from Nick on Wind Shadow and immediately glued it onto the air pump hose so I can't lose this one. After that I spent several hours trying to copy and paste my signature into an Adobe PDF file. I've done that before but couldn't make it work with any of my updated "and improved" apps. I found a couple of apps online that would, but would have had to spend about $30 to do so; not something I want to do for a one time occurrence.
                    Patty Williamson and I later went over to the library and watched a very good, old war movie, "The Enemy Below" with Robert Mitchum at the library.

Thursday, 29 March - I headed over to Burdine's Fuel Dock to get gasoline for the dinghy and generator this morning, but they were closed, as was Pancho's, so I had to go a little further to the Marathon Marina; not the Marathon City Marina, which doesn't have fuel at all. I was surprised to see that since I got fuel last, the price has gone up considerably. I bought just over a hundred dollars worth. Upon getting back from there and moving the gas aboard, I went over to the library to print out the paperwork I had tried to copy my signature onto yesterday, signed it, photographed it, and emailed away. As soon as I finished that I headed back to the marina to re-learn how to splice rope. I've done it before but it was probably over sixty years ago. A refresher course was certainly needed. I mentioned that I'm left handed and that really messed the instructors up. Two different instructors tried to teach me, but the splices just weren't coming out right. I could tell it, even though they didn't notice. I finally asked my friend Mike Barber from the sailing vessel "Whensday" for help. He was knowledgeable enough to tell me that it doesn't matter whether you're right or left handed; it's like using scissors, they are right handed and so is the rope, right hand twist, so you have to do it right handed. No problem. I learned right handed. The splices looked perfect. We spliced 2400 feet of rope that evening in about 20 foot pieces to be used on mooring balls at all the dive sites around the Florida Keys.

Friday, 30 March - Patty loaned me her car this morning so I got a lot of errands run, two hardware stores, NAPA Auto, Walgreen's, K-Mart, and finally, groceries at Publix. Later, we went to the Sunset Grill and listened and danced to some of the local sailors rocking out in their band, "The Marathon All-Stars".

Saturday, 31 March - A dinghy drift had been suggested for the harbor this evening because of the full moon but no one had volunteered to organize it. There really isn't much to organizing one. All you need to do is tell people what time to show up with snacks to share as you drift around the harbor with a bunch of dinghies rafted together. About 6:30 I announced that Patty and I were headed over to the main channel and that I hoped others would join us. My weather app said the moon would rise at 7:06 local time, but I guess that didn't take daylight savings time into account. Patty was supposed to meet a friend on her boat at 8 o'clock, so we left the group of about 20 people at about five minutes till eight ...then the moon rose over the harbor, big, orange and beautiful.

Sunday, 1 April - April Fools' Day - I got fooled today. Every morning for the last year I've announced on the VHF radio Cruiser's Net that I have a never used mainsail for sail, and lately I've been trying to get rid of an air conditioner that I haven't and probably won't ever use because it draws too much energy. Jim from the sailing vessel "Double Trouble" came on the Cruiser's Net this morning claiming to be a new vessel in the harbor in need of a mainsail for a 45 foot boat and, since summer is almost upon us, an air conditioner. It did seem too good to be true, but I fell for it anyway. He didn't clarify the joke until the very last item on the net. I'm sure it disappointed most of the boaters in the harbor to realize they'll be hearing me again tomorrow. I'm sure they're tired of my sales pitch, I am.
                    I got a lot done today. I changed the oil in the engine, replaced the sacrificial zinc in the transmission cooler, and topped off the water in the starter battery. I finished just in time to shower onboard, then pick up Patty Williamson to go meet some other boaters at the dinghy dock and then walk over to Banana Bay Resort for a few drinks and a little dancing. We had a really beautiful view of the sunset from the outside bar and listened to folk music by "Four Sheets to the Wind." Great harmonizing!

Monday, 2 April - I finished up in the engine room today by installing a sacrificial zinc in the 12Volt refrigeration line and reattaching a wire on the engine driven refrigeration compressor that had been broken by one of the drive belts while I was on the way back from hurricane Irma. I haven't needed the engine driven refrigeration since Irma, but I will.

Tuesday, 3 April - I spent three hours online this morning trying to find an LED replacement for an 8 inch fluorescent light I have in the saloon on the boat, but couldn't find one that fits the bill. Most are about 3 to 4 inches in diameter and the largest that I found was 5 1/4 inch. They are all bright and use less energy, but I need to cover a 6 1/2" hole. Small is, many times, better, but not in this situation. I finally gave up on finding a light and ordered another gas tank valve and a couple of water jug caps on Amazon.com. I had hoped to order all of them together and get the cheap shipping rate on all three.
                    This afternoon I ran three dinghy trips to the Marathon Marina to get diesel fuel 25 gallons at a time. If I run over there tomorrow one more time, I'll have a full tank and all the jugs full, too, a hundred and twenty five gallons, plus 25 gallons of gasoline for the dinghy and generator. I hope this boat doesn't catch on fire! I better fill the water tank and jugs tomorrow. I should have filled the fuel tank immediately after Irma to keep condensation out of it. All winter I've only had about 30 gallons in the 100 gallon fuel tank. I hope I don't suffer the consequences; a stalled engine from water in the fuel.

            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