New Sails, Cushions and Lazy Jacks

It's 6:30am, cold and the light is just starting to come into the cabin through the ports on the cabin. I've turned on the small heater we have aboard knowing that even though its so small, the cabin will quickly warm up. With my hot cup of coffee, I write, listening to the only sounds of the humming of the heater as I type on the cold keyboard of my Mac. We have splurged on new cushions for the salon which should be here soon. And, after the new main was installed we have called the rigger to secure a lazy jack system which should arrive shortly that will guide the sail down nicely above the boom instead of piling it up on the deck we we let down the sail. Most importantly though is the engine problem. The coolant is bubbling in the reservoir which means there is a leak somewhere. After hours of searching with a mechanic, we are no closer to fixing the problem. I'm sure there will be more investigating this weekend.

Another day aboard

It was a quiet morning at the harbor, except for the resident sea lions that take over the docks wherever they can. Rain is coming tonight, so its time to batten down the hatches again, hoping new leaks won’t sprout up.  Tonight is laundry night and we will make 2 trips down the dock and up 3 flights of stairs to use the laundry facilities near our boat. As it is darker earlier now, we have to be careful as we make our way down the uneven, dark docks watching for lounging sea lions or misstepping into the water. The wind is picking up now, howling through the rigging as the space heater tries to keep our cabin warm. The lights twinkle on the small white wire Christmas trees with a glow that reminds me of the fireplace in our old home. Another day aboard...

Sunrise

The mornings are getting colder now, and the first order of business is to turn on the small West Marine space heater. After that its time for coffee and I am glad to have kept the one small luxury aboard, the Keurig single cup coffee maker. The smell of fresh brewed coffee moves through the boat as the light starts to filter through the ports. Hot coffee in hand I grab my Canon camera and head up to the cockpit. The pinks and reds of the sunrise are so intense that the water and sky looks like one huge painting. I am in awe as I take in the beauty of the morning wondering if I will ever get tired of this beautiful view from my watery backyard. I snap as many shots as I can before the light starts to change and with the memory in my mind I head off to work feeling grateful for my life aboard this morning.

Life aboard a boat...

It’s  Sunday which means we don’t have any official plans for the day :) The high winds died down leaving us with a beautiful crisp, clear day, perfect for a cup of hot coffee while walking along the empty beach to see what was washed up during the last storm. 

Two kinds of fisherman today, the ones in the huge seiners motoring just off our stern with the rumble of the engines and the other, a King Fisher who decided to have two little fish he caught right outside our galley porthole this afternoon. We have been thinking that these little birds were woodpeckers, until today when he savagely had small fish in his beak and banged their heads on this lifeline he was sitting on to kill them before he swallowed them whole! 

Ending the day with a delicious nut loaf from Valley Vegetarian’s recipe and a homemade apple pie all cooked in our little propane oven aboard Silent Lady.