Sunday, 2 January 2022 - Susie wasn't feeling well last night but she still went to work at Christine's Consignment Shop this morning so I spent some time reading this morning. Later in the afternoon I went ashore for the Happy Hour festivities at the tiki hut at the marina for a little while.

Monday, 3 January - I defrosted the freezer today and intended to go grocery shopping before playing ping pong with Walt Avery, but about the time I needed to leave the boat it started raining so I picked up a copy of "The Complete Sherlock Holmes" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and proceeded to read. At 3 o'clock Walt and I played and for the first time in competition with him, I won two games. It was quite windy outside and we play next to a large overhead door and gusts coming into the building certainly were a factor as we played. As we played we might be preparing to hit a forehand shot that was suddenly transformed by a sudden breeze into a backhand or vise versa. It was certainly a set of interesting games that had many easy shots turned into unfathomable misses and extremely difficult shots that somehow made it to the other man's court. It was so funny that it was fun.

Tuesday, 4 January - Wow! My promoting of the pickle ball matches via the VHF Cruiser's net in the mornings has paid off. We had 23 people show up to play this morning and only 16 can play on the four courts at a time. This does make it easy to mix the teams up between games, which lets you play against many different players of different skill levels throughout the day, which is good. As soon as pickle ball was over I took a quick shower at the marina then walked down to Publix to buy groceries, then, after buying $160 worth of groceries, I hired a cab to get back to the marina.

Wednesday, 5 January - For the first time today I beat Walt Avery at two game of ping pong. I was playing very well and he was having a horrible day at it. This evening I dinghied to the marina's tiki hut to listen to Candace, Chris, and Ted sing and play during their practice session. Candace and Chris have gotten bookings at a couple of the local bars and restaurants, but we get to hear them free.

Thursday, 6 January - We had about twenty or twenty two players on the pickle ball courts again today. I didn't count them but they, again, more than filled our four courts.

Friday, 7 January - Cruiser's Net this morning at nine, as usual, but it was recommended that we move the net, which has been at 9 am for many years, to 8 am. We'll see if that works out. I'll have to get up earlier.

Saturday, 8 January - It sprinkled a few times today and was around 80°F, but I never left the boat, although the rain wasn't the reason. I tried to get the hinges on a collapsible chair to work, but failed at that. It's a nice chair but it is more like a bed since the back won't stay vertical; it wants to open all the way to horizontal every time. I guess it will be going to the dumpster soon.

Sunday, 9 January - I had been asked by Ted Williams of S/V Makaya to take him through the Boot Key mangroves and since Susie has tested positive for Covid-19 and the tides would be up, I decide today would be a good day for that. I contacted him before the Cruiser's Net this morning and he said it would be a good day for him, too, so I announced it on the net. Ann Mullet of S/V Meherio borrowed my second kayak and, at the appointed time, 10:30, two others showed up at my boat, Fred of S/V Otter II and Jim, a fellow that has a small sailboat anchored out in Whiskey Creek. We did the full tour, including the Jungle Jim trail. I was prepared to saw the bowsprit off of O'die's sunken sailboat, Dreama, but that proved unnecessary. I cut away a few mangroves from the bow and we got through and I'm sure that was a lot easier than sawing through that hardwood bowsprit. After getting around the bowsprit, Ted and Anne headed on back to the harbor via Whiskey Creek and I showed Fred and Jim two more trails. When we got to the end of the second trail I was surprised and pleased to see that someone else had been there since I opened up some more of that trail and they had extended it even further. I started working on extending it even further yet, so Fred and Jim got bored and started getting eaten by noseeums, so they headed back. I worked on the trail for a couple of hours, but, since the tide was starting to ebb, realized that I'd better get out while I still could. I really wouldn't want spend the night in there. The noseeums and mosquitos would surely eat me alive after dark.

Monday, 10 January - I was working out on the afterdeck on the boat right after the Cruiser's Net when on of the pickle ball players came by and waved, then he turned his dinghy around and came back to tell me that a few others were going to play. I decided to join them but just as I was about to leave the boat, Ann Mullen came by to apologize for putting a scratch on my kayak on Sunday. I had noticed the scratch and wondered how it could have happened. When Jim, Fred and I had decided to take the long way home on the Sunday trip, she just returned to Island Time to drop off my kayak and return to her boat in her dinghy. Unfortunately, she had a hard time getting out of the kayak and fell over, getting trapped under my swim platform. She finally managed to get out, but the ladder on the bottom of the platform scratched my kayak. As she was about to leave, Chris, another boater nearby stopped to ask some questions about my bimini top, so I missed a couple of pickle ball games, but we played a little longer and I made up for the missed games. At 3 o'clock I met Walt Avery and played ping pong with him Fred Rybczynski for about an hour and a half.

Tuesday, 11 January - After pickle ball this morning, I called Adam on S/V Tapestry to help me remove the bolts on a support for the bimini top that has been leaking. To make a long story short, three nuts came off easily and the forth wouldn't seemed so hard to get off that I was afraid I might twist the bolt in half, so we gave up and retightened them all.

Wednesday, 12 January - I had planned on sealing the leak at the base of one of the bimini top corner supports yesterday, but pickle ball and the stuck nut got in the way, and since rain was expected by about noon today, I rushed to Home Depot this morning to get some sealant, then did the repair on the support before playing ping pong with Walt Avery and Fred Rybczynski this afternoon. Walt still clobbers me and will continue to do so for a long time and Fred, although I beat him about 4 out of 5 games today, will soon surpass my skill level, too. He's obviously played a lot in the past and those skills will return soon, I'm sure. I hadn't played but perhaps 10 or 20 games in my life up until Walt invited me to play and Walt used to be a very highly rated amateur player and is still very good. He just needs a better competitor to challenge him.

Thursday, 13 January - We had over twenty players for pickle ball again today. That's good. My promoting it on the Cruiser's Net in the mornings is paying off.

Friday, 14 January - My Cruiser's Net this morning was rather short and after that I headed in to the marina office and paid the rent on my mooring ball. I also took my old window fan into the workroom to donate it. It won't be needed for a couple of months but when warm weather arrives it will be appreciated. When I returned to the boat I had lunch, then repaired a charge cord for my laptop and patched a leak in my dinghy. I must admit, I was disappointed in how slowly the epoxy I used was setting up. I had expected it to set within minutes but it hadn't set after two hours. I raised the dinghy on the davits and will let it set overnight or longer.

Saturday, 15 January - It was an absolutely gorgeous day here today; about 78°F, light winds, six inch seas. We couldn't ask for nicer so Walt, Mary Ackroyd and I kayaked out to West Sister Rock, a coral island just the other side of Boot Key that is about 50 yards wide and 75 yards long with only two living bushes and no trees on it. One bush is a Black Mangrove and the other is a White Mangrove. Boot Key is covered in mostly Red Margroves. We spent about 4 hours on the round trip. Just after I had moved the kayak back onto the deck, a boat ran aground on the submerged grass flats near me so I picked up my VHF microphone and let the harbor this guy was going to need help. About 45 minutes later we had him off and moving again, but as as afterthought, I think we should have let him sit there until the tide came in and floated his boat for him. An awful lot of damage was done to the grass flats that the manatees feed on and they are having a tough time of it in Florida.
                    Back on my boat, I removed the board I had holding pressure on the patch I applied yesterday and applied another very small patch on one of the other tubes. I'll let it sit overnight again. Tomorrow is supposed to be very windy, rainy, and cooler.

Sunday, 16 January - 10:30 AM - It's a nice, breezy day right now but there's a strong storm line headed our way that should arrive in about 2 hours and they've just issued a tornado warning for the Keys that is associated with that front. I was on deck checking my lines and noticed that, in these mere 30 mph breezes, my boat is pulling the 20 inch mooring ball down about one and a half feet below the surface as the boat backs up in the wind. I don't know how much force it takes to sink a 20" ball, but it's quite a bit, and the wind are going to shift from the south to the north and pick up just as the front hits us. However, the only problems I might anticipate are someone else's boat breaking loose and hitting me. The danger should pass before dark...at least I hope so.
                    Later...well, even though we had 40 mph winds and several boats dragged their anchors in the anchorage, there was no serious damage done, just a little excitement and anxiety, and it was all but over in about 30 minutes. All's well in paradise again.
                    Susie finally came out of covid seclusion this afternoon and we spent the evening dancing at Dockside.

Monday, 17 January - Boaters on the radio were complaining that they were ready for winter to be over today. It only reached a high of 76°F! Other than that it was a beautiful day here. I glued a holder for my outdoor weather probe today. I need to keep it outside but in the cockpit is too well protected. The only spot I think it will be accurate and protected at the same time in mounted up under the solar panels at the back of the boat. The solar panels should keep it pretty dry but they are black and get pretty warm in the sun so I made the holder out of closed cell insulation that covers all but one side, which will be facing down and be open so air can circulate around it. It will be interesting to see how long it survives out in the salt air.
                    Tami and Jay called and offered me some Tang drink mix because they ordered a whole case and won't be able to consume it all before the expiration date. I have a container onboard and it has gotten so hard that I can't break it apart with an icepick. I think it is a little past its best buy date. It is clearly marked "Best when used by 27 DEC 1821". I didn't realize the astronauts had gone into space that long ago or that I had kept it that long. I'll try to use these newer jars up quicker.

Tuesday, 18 January - Wow! I need to quit advertising pickle ball on the Net. We had 27 people show up for the games today and we can only have 16 on the courts at once. My playing was very mediocre today. Back on the boat I finished up mounting the weather sensor and filled the tank on the dinghy so I don't run out of gas getting to shore. My patches on the dinghy are doing fine. It's nice to not have to pump it up every time I use it. This evening Susie and I went to Skipjacks and met Roland and Leta Kok, Ann Mullet, Kim, Donny and Michele and others for dinner and dancing to music by Four Sheets to the Wind. It's still cool, but there's no breeze so sandals, jeans, and long sleeved shirt was the dress of the evening.

Wednesday, 19 January - Susie took me to one of the local medical centers today to get an EKG, chest X-ray, and blood drawn for testing in preparation for my upcoming hernia operation on February 9th. At 3 o'clock, I met Walt Avery, Emily, and Kevin for an hour of ping pong at the marina workshop.

Thursday, 20 January - We had so many pickle ball players show up today that we had to play to 7 points per game instead of 11 in order to cycle through the over 30 players. This afternoon I built the tread on the soles of my Chacos up with Shoe Goo. It will be interesting to see how long the Shoe Goo lasts since I wear the Chacos every day, including during pickle ball where they get pretty rough treatment with all the starting, stopping and quick direction changes involved. A twelve dollar tube of Shoe Goo will retread the sandals twice, hopefully making the $100 sandals last much longer.

Friday, 21 January - My Net this morning lasted for an hour and a half, pretty long for a weekday. The only other thing I accomplished today was making up another batch of cereal. I started with oats, rice puffs, and barley cereal, then added sunflower seeds, almonds, walnuts, peanuts, dried cherries, dried apricots, raisins, dried cranberries, ginger, and finished it off with M&Ms. It really makes a great meal or snack any time of day or night.

Saturday, 22 January - Susie volunteered to direct traffic at the annual 10K race this morning. Later, Susie and I met Roland and Leta, Anne Mullet, Kim, Walt Avery and Karen, and others at Barnacle Barnie's to have dinner and listen and dance to music by Candace Widgeon.

Sunday, 23 January - Susie worked at the local consignment shop this morning. I went to the marina and updated my charts on my chart plotter and other apps on my phone and laptop. At about 6pm I took the dinghy to Dockside and met Susie there for dinner.

Monday, 24 January - I recharged the 12VDC refrigeration with R134a refrigerant. The evaporator wasn't freezing all the way to the top but is now restored to full functionality. While doing that I discovered water on the floor where it should not be by the ladder in the companionway. It took me about four and a half hours to track down the source and tighten two small hose clamps in the pot/pan storage area in the corner between the sink and the stove.

Tuesday, 25 January - We had a very well attended pickleball session again this morning and people are asking to add more hours and more days of the week. Another mention was made, too, about separating the beginners from the more advanced players. We have so many players now that that might make sense. Susie picked me up at 4:30 so we could go to a class on crab trap float painting which was a lot of fun. Later we went out to dinner at Skipjack's.

Wednesday, 26 January - I worked on taxes this morning, then Walt Avery and I played ping pong this afternoon. This evening I watched a movie on my big screen iPhone. Well, it covers the same angle of view as a "big screen TV" when I watch it 15 inches from my face.

Thursday, 27 January - Pickleball was the highlight of the day, then I called GoDaddy to try to move my website to their servers. After about 3 hours of having problems communicating with their Spanish speaking support and problems with their site, the support person hung up on me or we lost connection and she didn't call me back. Later, Susie and I went to SkipJacks for dinner and to listen to a musical duo that I hadn't heard before. They were very good and really had the crowd on their feet on the dance floor.

Friday, 28 January - Due to demand, we played pickleball again this morning. I had to do the Net this morning so I didn't get there until about 10:15, but they had started at about 9AM to let some of the new players play together and get some instruction. It had rained lightly, just enough to make it necessary to squeegee the courts, but after that they dried out quickly and we had some great games. "Four Sheets to the Wind" played at Skipjacks so Susie and I joined Roland and Leta there for dinner and dancing.

Saturday, 29 January - A cold front moved through today, so cold that Dockside, which is an open air bar and restaurant, was closed and Susie and I stayed in at her house and watched a couple of movies on Netflix.

Sunday, 30 January - Marathon set a new record low temperature this morning at 46°F. So I'm sure most boaters hunkered down in their boats to stay warm. Bob Dahmer called and said that since the wind will change direction overnight, he moved his boat to inside the harbor today.

Monday, 31 January - I've had so much trouble with my web site host, Web Intellects, this year that I was determined to move it to another host. GoDaddy is my domain name server and they had been recommended as a web site host by a friend, too. I spent several hours this morning trying to get answers to my questions and the site moved there even though there price was double what I've been paying, but I figured it would be worth the cost. However, after having talked to several of their support people and finally finding one that could resolve a hitch in moving my site, I was told that there'd be an additional $70 per year fee to get my email from them, even though it says right on their site that email is included. I had already had to pay their $200+ fee, so I said to heck with them and cancel my subscription and refund my money.
                    Walt, Fred and I played about two hours of ping pong this afternoon.

Tuesday, 1 February - We had over thirty pickleball players this morning again and it was still cool, but at least the winds are starting to die down a bit.

Wednesday, 2 February - By popular demand, we expanded our pickleball play by adding today to the list, then, in the afternoon three other ping pong players joined Walt Avery and myself. I was playing much better than usual and beat everyone except Walt, who trounced me as usual. The others have played quite a bit before, although in the distant past, and will soon be bettering me, I'm sure. They already have skills and techniques superior to mine and will soon recover their hand to eye coordination and muscle memory, I'm sure.

Thursday, 3 February - I had a dental appointment at 12:30 this afternoon so I had to quit pickleball a bit early to get there on time. The appointment was merely to get my teeth cleaned. This evening I had intended to meet Bob Dahmer and Leon to have a drink or two at Barnacle Barneys but when I arrived, they weren't there yet, but Roland, Leta, Anne Mullet, Kim and others were already there, which I hadn't expected. Donny of Four Sheets to the Wind and his wife Michele also showed up. Unfortunately, Susie missed out because she had made arrangements to spend the evening with a girl friend of hers.

Friday, 4 February - I was Net Control this morning so I was late for pickleball this morning. Not too many beginners showed up today so we had some much more competitive games for the most part. Susie and I joined Roland, Leta and the gang, including Bob Dahmer, for dinner and dancing at Skipjack Resort while listening to Four Sheets to the Wind. Diane Smullin also joined us but split her time between us and a couple of her other friends that were sitting at the bar. They were buying her shots of some kind and she got totally blitzed. Susie and I went to Dockside when Four Sheets to the Wind quit for the night and Diane tagged along. We were trying to sober her up and made sure that the only thing she drank there was water, but she loves to dance and, after she fell on the dance floor a couple of times, we took her to her boat back at Skipjack and made sure she was onboard safely.

Saturday, 5 February - We had another nautical flea market here in the harbor today and as soon as that was over Susie picked me up and we went to her house for the evening. Neither of us had played checkers in MANY years. We played for about two hours and still haven't finished the game. I seem to be ahead at the moment, but that certainly could change. We had left over homemade enchiladas that seem to get better the second and third time, then watched a movie on Netflix. We had totally forgotten that the Olympics are on, and should have been watching them instead of the movie.

Sunday, 6 February - Walt Avery, my ping pong partner had been out of town for the weekend so I picked him up at the marina and ferried him out to his boat when he returned. He'd been supposed to be visiting about 25 old friends up north, but found out that the group's hosts had Covid-19 so the group was reduced to only three. Susie worked at the consignment shop this morning then picked me up on her way home. Tonight was Open Jam Night at Dockside so we went there for dinner and dancing with all the usual suspects, of course.

Monday, 7 February - A professional pickleball player and instructor is in the area now and volunteered to teach a beginner and an intermediate pickleball class for us this morning, then we played until about 12:30 trying to practice what he tried to teach us. Ping Pong at 3 o'clock till 4:30 with Walt Avery, no one else showed up today.

Tuesday, 8 February - This was the last chance to play pickleball for awhile since I will be having surgery tomorrow for an inguinal (groin) hernia tomorrow. I returned to the boat after pickleball to pack clothes to take to Susie's while I recuperate from the surgery and to get the boat ready for my departure. I raised the dinghy onto the davits so it won't accumulate more marine vegetation and barnacles while I'm away, then Walt came and got me at 5 o'clock to take me to shore. Susie picked me up shortly after five and we drove to Key West to a hotel for the evening so that we could be on time for my 8AM appointment with the surgeon. Since there is only one road to Key West and even a small accident on that road can cause big traffic jams, we preferred to drive down early to spend the night.