Wednesday, 1 February 2023- I spent several hours today checking out what appeared to be a very good deal on a replacement two stroke Yamaha outboard motor. Some reviews of the site actually said it was "probably" a scam, but there was no proof. No one actually said they'd purchased something from the site, but not received it. However, no one actually said they'd received products from them either. I decided to go on their site and start the purchase process under a fake name, email address, address, etc. and find out for myself. When I got to the payment page the only methods of payment were check or money order. That was enough to convince me that I'd probably never receive anything from them but delays, excuses, and that they'd eventually stop communications. I will be purchasing from somewhere else. I also checked out the Yamaha dealer's website in Nassau. I don't know how the sell anything from the site. It's attractive with pictures that are probably supplied by Yamaha, but when I selected the model of outboard I'm interested in, all there was was a picture of it; no specifications, no pricing, nothing else. That amazes me.

Thursday, 2 February - I need a rest from dealing with the Yamaha outboard. I haven't been getting other things done on the boat that need attention. I spent this afternoon putting tools away, straighten up around the boat in general, and vacuuming.

Friday, 3 February - Continuing where I left off yesterday, this afternoon was totally spent cleaning the walls and ceilings to get rid of the layer of mildew that forms on them here in the heat and humidity. Susie and I tried out a new, at least to me, restaurant, Triton Seafood. Susie had been there before. The food tasted fine and the service was good, but I think we'd both agree that each of our pasta dinners were too soupy, and too pricey.

Saturday, 4 February - Before Susie's next door neighbor moved away Susie bought three fairly expensive fishing rods and reels from him for her brother to use when he comes to Florida. Today she suggested that she'd like to move them out of the corner of her living room and make a rack for them to be suspended overhead under the roof of her patio. It was a simple fix. She had a short piece of 1"X2" and I cut it to fit right between two rafters and I attached it in between them with screws. That supported the handle end of the poles and reels and the tips are supported by laying on the horizontal support on the outer edge of the roof. I brought Susie out to the boat today. She was hoping to see some dolphins or eagle rays, but it was quite windy and the water was quite turbid so we drew a blank on both. We did, however, enjoy a couple of margaritas and watched the sunset before heading out to dinner. We ate at Havana Jack's and listened and danced to music by Ty, Bob, and Bob, the Ty Thurman Band and were joined by Bongo Bob's wife, Bridgett shortly after we finished eating dinner.

Sunday, 5 February - Susie dropped me off at the marina this morning and I continued to put things back in their proper places and clean up the boat a bit while Susie worked at the consignment shop. We met again this evening for music and dancing at Dockside.

Monday, 6 February - I defrosted the freezer today and in the process discovered that the house batteries and the starter battery will probably need to be replaced soon.

Tuesday, 7 February - After pickleball this afternoon I headed to the grocery store, Publix. I've been buying groceries there for so long that I not only have my food list in order by aisle, but know where everything I usually buy is...until today. They have changed what's in all the aisles. It took me much longer to shop and I got so frustrated that I forgot to buy about $50 worth of canned vegetables. Now I'll have to go back again. Aargh! At least they had eggs today.

Wednesday, 8 February - I contacted a shipping broker in Miami today, hoping that they could arrange for shipping of a new two stroke Yamaha outboard motor from Nassau for me but they said there's no way, The engines are not EPA approved because they mix the oil and fuel and cause too much air pollution. I knew that dealers here in the state can't sell them, but hoped that I could buy one online and have the shipper act as my agent to deliver it here. That's not going to happen.

Thursday, 9 February - The Yamaha has a hole in its upper drive shaft casing that should not be there. I have no idea what caused that, but some fairly cool exhaust, along with a bit of water is exiting that hole and it shouldn't be. I now have to decide whether I want to order a bunch of parts that are in there and might or might not be needed, wait for them to arrive, then repair the engine, or take the engine apart, figure out what's in there that needs to be replaced, put the engine back together to use it until parts arrive, then disassemble it again and repair it. Today I priced out parts that "might" be needed.

Friday, 10 February - Not too long ago, actually while Susie was being treated for cancer and I was still here, Joe and Esther La Cort gave me a replacement grip tape for my pickleball paddle. I finally remembered to install it today. Actually, I have thought of it many times, usually while I'm at the courts, not when it's convenient to replace the grip. I doubt that it will make me play any better; perhaps in the summer when my sweat runs down my arm onto the grip, making it slippery.

Saturday, 11 February - Susie recently ordered a rug for her living room so her dog, Sangria, won't slip on the tiles. She (Sangria, not Susie) is starting to show her age and her back legs give out on her frequently. Susie then decided to move furniture into a different configuration and the rug is way too big for that so she sent it back. She kept the carpet padding however, since she had already opened it up, so we cut the padding down this afternoon for the smaller rug that she's ordered. We had dinner at Havana Jacks and met Mike Wagner and Bev Fowers, and Bongo Bob's wife, Bridget, there after dinner and did some dancing to Ty Thurman's band.

Sunday, 12 February - Susie worked today at the consignment store and I worked on the boat determining, or at least trying to, what is wrong with the house and start batteries and charging system. The new systems have a lot of electronic sensors and readouts on them that are supposed to make controlling, monitoring, and charging the batteries easier, but they complicate the process, too. I suspected that the start battery was bad and confirmed it this afternoon. Now the question is, did that battery drag the others down so low that they were compromised? I opened the switch to take it out of the system, but too late in the day to let the house batteries charge fully via the solar panels. This evening I met Susie at Dockside. It was very breezy and cool along with the fact that it was Superbowl Sunday, so out of the approximately thirty tables in the restaurant, there were only four that were occupied. I was actually glad; bars get way too loud when there are football games on the screens. Not only that, but Mark and Randy were singing way off key tonight and to add to that one of the only two people to join the band for open mic night was one of the worst singers we've seen there. We left before the last set even though we usually stay for all the music. There was one bonus; I actually got to hear Bob Jeager, the bass player sing. In the two or three hundred times I've seen him perform, this was the first time I've seen him walk up to the microphone. He usually just sits or stands in the back strumming that bass. Maybe he felt like Mark and Randy needed a little help. They did for sure tonight.

Monday, 13 February - I spent most of the afternoon online researching batteries at West Marine, Advanced Auto Parts, and NAPA. There are so many options that I had to create a spreadsheet on my laptop to be able to see the features and prices side by side to help make the decision. Which is better, a cheap battery that "might" last a couple of years or a more expensive battery that "might" last four. Actually, I wish that was all there is to it. It's trying to find the best compromise of many factors, AGM or flooded acid, cold cranking hours, marine cranking hours, amp hours, reserve time, price, and start, AGM, or dual purpose.

Tuesday, 14 February - I realized that the aforementioned stores aren't the only ones that sell marine batteries here; Home Depot does too, so I checked their batteries out today, too. Their price is good but I don't think they have enough amp and cranking hours as I "might" need. I may, also, have to go through this all over again if the house batteries that run the lights, water pumps, inverter, and refrigeration need replacing. Susie's son, Michael, is in town. She flew him in because Sangria is not doing well and Michael and Sangria get along so well. They'll both miss Sangria when she passes. Even though I spent almost two weeks in Cayahoga Falls this last fall with Susie where I met her brother, sister, mother and others, I look forward to meeting Michael this evening at Dockside.

Wednesday, 15 February - This afternoon Susie picked me up at 4 o'clock and took me to NAPA Auto Parts and back to pick up a start battery which I had purchased about one o'clock this morning after having returned from Dockside. I got a 20% discount for ordering it online and picking it up today at the store. I installed it when I got back to the boat.

Thursday, 16 February - Oops! I got behind on this blog and can't remember what I did on this day.

Friday, 17 February - As usual, I played pickleball this morning, then, this evening I joined about 30 or 40 other boaters for snacks at the marina's tiki hut since Susie is entertaining her son this week.

Saturday, 18 February - Almost all day today was spent trying to figure out why there is a hole corroded in the upper casing of the lower unit on the Yamaha outboard. I went to the docks and, with help from Kevin, removed the engine from the transom of the dinghy and took it inside to work on. It's next to impossible to do any work on it on the dinghy and there's always the chance of dropping something in the water. I had taken the service manual with me but never got beyond reading it and trying to figure out how to and what is involved to do the repair. The whole power head would need to come off and I didn't get started. About 12:30 Mimi Rehor, a tiny elderly lady that lives on her boat alone here in the harbor came in looking for someone to help her drill a 4 inch hole in a very small tabletop. She had bought a hole cutter, but didn't have the skills to use the drill press. I figured that would take about 20 minutes so I volunteered to help her. It took about 3 hours, but it looked perfect when I finished. Sounded easy, but it wasn't. The cutter wouldn't cut all the way through so I had to go at it from both sides.

Sunday, 19 February - I worked again today pulling tax information for 2022 together organizing it and tracked down a small part online for the Yamaha and ordered it. Later this evening I met Susie, Ted Williams, Rowland and Leta Kok, and others at Dockside for dinner and dancing.

Monday, 20 February - We had about 30 pickleballers this morning. I returned to the boat and bought up some reading this afternoon.

Tuesday, 21 February - Mike Wagner and Bev Fowers invited about 30 people to a Mardi Gras party at dockside by their boat. Susie, her son, Michael, and I joined them there for a late lunch. Mike and Bev are quite the music aficionados and Mike always plays some songs on his guitar and sings for us. Later, Susie and I went to Dockside for the music there, too.

Wednesday, 22 February - I got up a 5 AM this morning so that I could have breakfast and board the VA shuttle bound for Miami at 5:45. We arrived at about 9:30 and I told the driver to expect me to return last since I was to meet with the surgeon again that is to do my hernia operation, get X-rays done, have blood drawn, have my heart checked, and other tests. I had called two days earlier to confirm that all this was to be done. I was back out and finished in about an hour and not happy about it. None of the tests were done and I have to return in March to have those tests done, then have the surgery on April 4th. I had a three and a half hour wait for he last patient to arrive back at the shuttle and we arrived back in Marathon at 5PM. What a waste of a day.

Thursday, 23 February - I got up early this morning so I could contact the VA and try to arrange for my shoulder surgery either shortly before or shortly after my hernia operation. I couldn't reach them before I headed to pickleball so I tried again immediately afterward. I tried two different phone numbers that I have listed for "General Surgery" but no one ever answered so I tried the main line. I told the operator who I need to speak to and she said she'd transfer me to that department. The phone rang for five minutes then a recording came on saying that they were glad I had contacted the automated message line and started going through a list to choose from. I knew that was not going to put me in touch with a human so I gave up for the moment. I tried again later but no one ever answered the phones and I gave up. Susie picked me up at 1:45 and took me to a dermatology appointment here locally and brought me back. They froze several small spots on my scalp, back, and hand and cut a piece out of my scalp that he is sure in cancerous and sent it off for testing. I suspect I'll have to return for a Mohs procedure for that. This evening I dinghied in to the marina and listened to some of the boaters play some songs on their guitars and sing, but didn't last long. I returned to the boat to read.

Friday, 24 February - I called the Key West VA to talk to my primary care physician but was told that he doesn't talk to anyone without an appointment so I left a message for him to call me as soon as possible, then went online and asked the same thing. I don't expect much. I've spent several hours on the phone this week and accomplished nothing.

Saturday, 25 February - I listened to the Cruiser's Net this morning then headed to the marina workshop to install the small two dollar gasket that came in yesterday and to try to patch the hole caused by corrosion in the upper casing of the lower unit on the outboard. The replacement went smoothly but the patch that I put on is of JB Waterweld and it didn't cure as quickly as it should so after I put the engine back on the dinghy I was afraid to start the motor for fear that the uncured epoxy might be blown out of the hole by exhaust. I'll let it set overnight. I rowed the dinghy back to Island Time and caught up on some reading this evening.

Sunday, 26 February - Although the JB WaterWeld didn’t set up super hard as it should, it stayed in place when I started the engine up and took the dinghy out to Whiskey Creek for a test run. I tinkered with the Idle Screw and the Pilot Jet Screw. I ended up setting the Pilot Jet Screw set at about 1/4 Turn from all the way in, not 1 1/2 turns as indicated. Most of the time this would not plane the dinghy, but three times when I stood at the back of the dinghy, making the bow rise, it took off and planed up. It was a good thing that I had the painter that's tied to the bow of the dinghy in my hand to keep me from falling out the back of the boat.

Monday, 27 February - I disassembled the Original Carburetor on the Yamaha, which was on the engine, to check out its float, thinking that is the only thing that could be affected by changing the angle of attack of the dinghy the times that it jumped up on plane yesterday. The Float is exactly where it should be. 14mm. I checked everything I could out on the carb, and found the tiniest amount of crud in the Pilot Jet. I have a hard time believing that was the problem. Since I had the Original carburetor off, I decided to replace it with the new, off brand, unit. I have had it on the engine before to no avail. Guess what. It seemed to run ok so I took it out to Whiskey Creek and gave it full throttle. Finally, PROBLEM SOLVED. YAHOO! I think it’s taken about $600 and a year and a half to get it running right. I tweaked the Pilot Jet Screw a bit, ending up at about 3/4 of a turn out from all the way in and the Engine Runs Great. I took it out to the Atlantic for a short spin and it’s running great, about 25 to 30 mph instead of the 5 or 6 that I've been getting out of it for, seemingly, forever. Thank You Lord! Finally, I can move on to other projects. I just hope it lasts.

Tuesday, 28 February - My brother, Mike's, birthday. Oops, having run the Yamaha a bit more at or near idle speed, it coughs and sneezes a bit. I think I need to open the Pilot Needle about another 1/8 or 1/4 turn. I tried to contact my primary physician today to talk to him briefly about getting an appointment for shoulder surgery but the receptionist said he won't talk to patients without an appointment to do so. I went online and said give me an appointment for 4PM, but they didn't respond and he didn't call. No surprise. I talked to Mike for about 3 hours this evening. He's doing fine in east central Texas. Susie's son flew home today and I met her, Carol and Phil Vachon, and Ted Williams at Dockside for cocktails and dancing.

            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