mona lisa

 

We woke up to the neighbor's barking dog...which is the very reason Simon stays home while we are cruising.  Not only is he a terrible swimmer, and is a nervous wreck on the boat, I would not subject my neighbors in close proximity to his barker.  He's as loud as....  Well, you get the idea.

 

It was a rough start to the morning, not nearly enough sleep the night before.  I intended to jack myself up on some Cuban coffee, but soon it was 11am, and too late for coffee.  It was time to move on to a Polar Pop (just like Ricker's back home) for a diet Mt. Dew :)  Cap'n had some stuff he needed from Home Depot and the Specialty Hardware, so it was time to get fortified.  I really hope there's diet Mt. Dew in China...

 

When I got back the boys were hard at it-
polishing away...notice I got them Polar Pops, too :)

They stopped for lunch, and were right back at it...
changing sanding pads, buffing, taking turns,
it was hot, sweaty, dirty work.

Cap'n was filthy...but look how the bow plate shines!
Eventually, another boater said, "It's not the
Mona Lisa, just put it on the boat!"
Seriously, though, Cap'n had admirers all day long.

Though he could continue polishing it on in to tomorrow, it might
still not reach his satisfaction.  He finally declared it "good enough."
I think it's incredible- the outside seams are...well, seamless!
It looks almost too shiny and new; now the rest of the boat desperately
needs some serious waxing and some color restore.   It's not going to
happen this season.  We are quickly running out of time.

While Donnie turned the dock into a tool room today, I stayed busy down below.  I got all of the jerry cans out of the car.  The fuel ones were stored underneath the Vberth (empty, of course).  I repacked all of our dive gear, and got Ellie's dive gear packed in a scuba bag to take to her when we get home. I then repacked the sea berth, getting the life raft and ditch bag stored in their 'cruising spot' where they are easily accessible.  I also got the four jerry water cans stored. 

Cap'n looked at the route to Marco Island while we ate lunch, and it's about 85nm away.  I looked up our crossing to there last April to see how long it took us.  We prefer to maintain at least 5 knots on a passage.  More is great, and is much appreciated, but if we fall below 5 knots for more than ten minutes or so, we'll fire up Bessie.  We plan to fill our water tanks on the boat before we take off, and we most likely won't begin to use all the fuel we have in the tank, though we'd like to.  Since this is not an extended cruise, (just a quick jaunt up the west coast of FL), there's no need to carry extra fuel and water. Anyhow, last year we left at 4am, and got in at 10pm.  Because we were not familiar with Marco Island, it was difficult navigating our way in and around the shoals.  I don't care to repeat that, so we decided to back up our departure to 12 midnight, which should get us in by 6pm, give or take.

By mid afternoon, I took my laptop up to the dockmaster's for the best signal, and started researching the various weather routers and marine forecasts.  Weather is definitely coming in the middle through the end of next week.  If we leave at midnight Tuesday (which is Monday night), we look to have the most favorable wind, wave height and precipitation conditions.  We really need to leave sooner, rather than later, as we can't afford to be stuck here until the end of the week. Our haul out date is Monday, April 21st at 8am.  That means we have to be at The Glades, up river from Ft. Myers beach, by Easter Sunday morning.  It will take a full day to get all the sails, rails, and such off the boat. We also have to get all of our personal items loaded into a rental car, and clean Marquesa top to bottom for long term storage.

On a side note, I'm really going to miss the Easter Sunrise Service at Sombrero Beach this year. What a beautiful setting to celebrate His resurrection!  People from all walks of life, locals and tourists, all denominations, gather in the early dawn to 'sing in' the rising sun.  It gives me chills thinking about all the 'Jesus love' present in one place. 

So...the plan as it currently stands (of course it could change) is that tomorrow is reinstallation of the bow plate- thirteen bolts in all.  Then it's reconnecting the roller furling, and threading on the jib sail.  Once that is complete, I have to go up the mast to replace the anchor light.  On Sunday, we need to do a shakedown cruise to tune the rigging.  I want to get the side stays tightened a few turns, and then replace the tape around the base of them.  The boot around the mast needs caulked, as we have the slightest leak into the salon when it rains, and the rainy reason will soon be upon us down here.  On Monday then, we will finish with provisioning and making the boat ready for passage.  If weather looks to move in sooner, we may take off Monday if need be.  I'll be checking multiple forecast sights in the coming days to see when the best weather window presents itself.

I busied myself the rest of the afternoon defrosting the freezer, taking stock of our provisions and how many meals I have left to make.  I did some hand sewing, and the usual boat chores. The cleaning, the sorting, and the organizing is never complete for my OCPD :)  The exterior of the boat is driving me crazy right now, but I'm doing my past to look beyond it until the bow plate is installed and we are back in action.  I can't wait to have Marquesa clean and looking her best :)  It makes for one happy First Mate.

 

This came in the mail today...its a UV shade cloth
to cover Marquesa with once she is on jack stands.
It will block 70% of the UV rays, which
will keep the boat cooler, and the fiberglass
somewhat protected.  It also woven, so it can
breathe, unlike a regular tarp.  I have to find a
place to store it IN the boat though before it goes
ON the boat at The Glades.  It sets my wheels turning...

So after we got cleaned up for dinner (I jumped in the pool, lol) we went with
Kenny and Fran back to Springers.  We have been on a quest for the best pizza
in the islands for four years now.  We think we can declare it at one place,
and then we find another that we think is even better.  Our problem is the
standard for pizza was set in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic- of all places.

So look at the picture above...Donnie and Kenny decided they wanted some hot wings- the hottest
wings to be had.  They tore them up, as I am sure they will be 'torn up' later tonight or tomorrow morning.  Now look at the table behind them.  Nice family- Grandma and Grandpa, parents, kids.
They leave the restaurant, and leave a to-go box on their table.  Donnie looks behind him a few minutes later and spies the box...and. takes. it.  Then opens it.  And he and Kenny's face lit up like it was a present on Christmas morning- MORE CHICKEN WINGS!!!  yep.  He took them home.  I could only shake my head.  You would have thought they had shot a ten point buck.  They had all kinds of plans and designs on. somebody. else's. chicken. wings.  Thank God the rightful owners didn't come back to claim their leftovers.  That would have been all sorts of AWKWARD.

On that absurd note, this chickie is headed for bed...G'nite, y'all!