The Boat, The Boat---???

About 9:30am I walked to the marina office and Isabel was in. I have learned that when Mexican people say a time, it doesn’t really mean exactly that time. It is whenever so that is why I gave her another ½ hour to get to the office. I know she doesn’t always get in at 9:00am. She called the doctor office and said I could see the doctor. I asked if she would take me as I really didn’t know how to get there and she said she would just give her about ½ hour. At 10:30am I walked back to the office and waited a few minutes until she locked things up and we were off to the doctors. She had errands to run so she would drop me off and after she was finished she would come back to pick me up and take me back to the marina. She said the doctor said it would be alright about the language barrier so life was good. When I got into the doctor office there were a few people waiting so I sat and waited my turn. Actually there are no appointments. You go and wait your turn. When the doctor had finished with his patient he shook everyone’s hand and welcomed them. Then the next person went into his office. He was pretty quick in getting people seen and moving on to the next person so I didn‘t have to wait long. When it was my turn, he had me sit on the other side of his desk and asked me what the problem was. I tried to tell him but some things weren’t getting through and I didn’t understand everything he was saying to me so he said he would call his nurse as he/she spoke good English. He called the nurse on the phone and I expected him to tell the nurse to come in. You know like what the doctors in the States do. No! That isn’t what happened. Apparently the nurse was somewhere else and so the doctor spoke with him and then gave the phone to me so I could explain what was going on with me. Then I gave the phone back to the doctor and the nurse translated what I said to the doctor. The doctor said something and handed me back the phone. This went on for a couple minutes. Then when the doctor was satisfied and knew what was going on with me he hung up. He weighted me, took my temperature, and blood pressure. Temp was normal, and my blood pressure was excellent. He commented on how it was like a young person. Then he had me lie on the exam table and proceeded to ultra sound my lower abdomen. He had done that the last time too and I was hoping it would be the same this time. He said there was an infection in the bladder and kidneys and he wanted me to have a urine sample done and blood drawn the next morning. So I had to fast after 8:00pm until I got the lab work done. He gave me a urine cup for the sample and said after I get the results of the test to come see him. I thanked him and proceeded to pay. For the urine cup and office visit it was $410.00 pesos which is about $31.00 dollars U.S. I was finished with the doctor and Isabel wasn’t back yet so I waited about 10-15 minutes and she drove up. I told her about the visit and how he had to have his nurse translate. We got a chuckle out of that. We went back to the marina and I thanked her for her help. When I got to the boat, Dave had already put some of the side curtains up to enclose the cockpit area. I told him what happened at the doctors and that I have to go to the lab in the morning. The rest of the afternoon I helped Dave with the rest of the curtains. The top middle one was a bugger to put on as you have to get the zipper inside a rubber casing and slide it onto the fiberglass dodger which is over the companionway going down into the boat. He was working in the hot sun with his ball cap on but still he was very hot and sweaty. It was a struggle and it took a while but he managed to get the top section on. I tried to stay out of the direct sun and handed him the screws and tools he needed. We both took breaks to drink some Gatorade then back out into the sun to finish the job. Once that piece was in we put up the larger curtains and we were done. Dave wanted to pressure wash the boat but I suggested we wait until the sun was lower and it was cooler. So we went inside where the air conditioner was running and waited until the sun went down. We had a cocktail first then pressure washed the boat. Actually Dave did the washing and I stayed on the dock to guide the unit, water hose and electrical cord so nothing would end up in the salt water. The boat looks much nicer now. He was finishing up when Alberto stopped by to talk to Dave. Alberto doesn’t work for the marina anymore as he was hired by the mine. He will be working on the dock dealing with fuel for the ships and maybe even the rigs. He will be getting twice the amount of pay than he did at the marina. So all is good. Dave asked him if he would still wash our boat and take care of having the diver come once a month as usual. He said he could do that as he had weekends off so he could stick to his usual schedule with our boat washing. He washes it 2 times a month and the diver cleans the bottom once a month and Alberto pays him with the money we have left with him to do that. Alberto is a very trustworthy man and has taken care of our boat for 2 to 3 years now. He is a good man. So we are happy he will continue to keep the boat clean. Plus this gives him and his family extra money. I told him Christmas is coming so now with the new job he can buy lots of presents!!!! He laughed and rolled his eyes!!!! After Alberto left Dave finished with the boat and went below where I fixed dinner.

The lab doesn’t open until 7:30am so I wasn’t in a rush to get there at that time. I got up at 8:00am, my normal time, got dressed and took my sample with me to the lab. The diver had arrived to clean the bottom of the boat and I was on my way to the lab. Because the town isn’t far from the marina, I usually walk everywhere if I know where things are. I have made it a point to walk all over the town to learn where certain things are, like the pharmacy, grocery stores, fabric store and the like. So I am really familiar with the town. Unfortunately the doctor is not in town, he is located up on the hill so that was why I needed some help finding his office. When I arrived at the lab there were people coming and going. I didn’t have to wait at all and I was whisked into the back room. The lady technician asked how I was and took the urine specimen and proceeded to draw 3 vials of blood from me. The doctor wanted to know everything about my health. When the technician was finished I paid $750.00 pesos, which is about $58 dollars U.S. That is with the current exchange rate at 13%. I was told to come back at 1:00pm. That is when the results are ready for pickup. When I left the lab I walked to the grocery store which was just a block away and got a few things then walked back to the boat. The diver was still cleaning the under belly of the boat and since I had a while to wait before going back to the lab, I had coffee and breakfast then went out into the cockpit and rinsed and shammed it dry. I was going to clean the stainless steel but it looked good so I will wait and do that next time when it is cooler. It is already getting hot. It was after 12:00pm so I had a half sandwich and a little bit of Gatorade, changed my clothes and headed for the lab to pick my results up. They are open only from 7:30-9:00am then close so they can process the lab work then reopen from 1:00-2:00pm for people to pick up the typed results and are closed for the rest of the afternoon and evening. When I say typed results that is how they are done. By typewriter. No computers. Mexico, in the smaller towns are not up to speed with technology. The bigger cities are to some extent. Even with computers at the desks, there is always a typewriter close by. When I walked in the lab another lady was waiting. They asked my name and said it would be a few minutes as they needed to get it ready. About 5-10 minutes, if that, they handed me the results in an envelope and I left and headed up the hill to the doctors office. The hill didn’t seem that steep until I was almost to the top. It was hot, so I took my time. When I arrived at the doctor office the lady that handles the pharmacy and paperwork was there reading a paper. She spoke no English and I, with my limited Spanish had a hard time understanding what she was trying to tell me. Even with the language barrier, I finally understood that the doctor was at lunch and he would be back soon. It was about 1:15pm and he arrived at 1:30pm. He walked up to me and smiled and asked how I was and shook my hand. Then invited me into his office. There I gave him the results, which I had looked at while waiting for him, and he was pleased with the blood work. I was even surprised to see that my cholesterol was 205 which is the lowest it has ever been!!!! I must be doing something right!! Anyway----I only had a bladder infection which was good to hear. The kidneys weren’t effected this time. So he sent me to his wife, which is the lady who does the pharmacy and paperwork, and I got 10 vitamin-C fizz tablets to take in water once a day and medication for the infection, Keflex tablets of 500mg. There are 12 tablets and I take 1 every 8 hours with lots of water until they are gone. The medication was $462.00 pesos which is $36.00 dollars U.S. So with the doctor visit, lab and medicine it cost us $125.00 dollars U.S. Very impressive isn’t it! I got good care and it is cheap compared to what we have to pay in the states. We really didn’t want to fork out the pesos because of being short in the checking account from vacation, but in the long run it was great!!! So I am on the way to recuperating. I do have to say that as foreigners we have to be careful where we go for medical care. We know that Santa Rosalia has a good sized hospital, Dave had the lucky experience having to go there when he split his leg open and had to get 25 stitches, and I had been to the doctor once before and got excellent care. Rosie, who was my interpreter the first time, had recommended Dr. Jose as that was her family doctor. So I wasn’t concerned. But like any place you travel it is always good to be cautious and ask around.

When I got back from the doctors I drank the Gatorade that I left in the refrigerator and cooled off. We had checked the water level in the batteries before I left so that had been taken care of. I sat down and started this months blog and after a while Dave said the air conditioner sounded funny. Well as a boater, if something sounds funny it needs immediate attention. I was sitting on top of one of the air conditioning units so I took the cushion off and opened the compartment and there was a lot of water in the pan, which it does get due to condensation, but there was too much and it was almost to the top of the pan. So needless to say it needed some attention. Dave was thinking there shouldn’t be that much water as he put in a hose that goes from the pan to the sump pump for drainage. So maybe the hose was clogged. Well with our brilliant deduction, the hose clamp around the hose coming from the air conditioning pan was loose causing leakage around the hose. I tightened the hose clamp and wiped up the water around and underneath the hose then proceeded to suck water out of the pan with a turkey baster. I have to do that with the other unit that is underneath one of the guest beds in the back of the boat as the guy who installed it didn’t put a drain hole in it like the other one. So it is one of my jobs to keep an eye on that so it doesn’t over flow. It isn’t a big deal as I only have to do that when the air conditioner has been running a lot. The water does go into the bilge but we don’t like to have standing water there so we try to prevent that from happening. So with the hose clamp tightened and a lot of the water sucked out of the pan, things were working much better. Water was then draining into the sump pump like it was suppose to and while we were fixing and cleaning, I cleaned the sump pump as it hadn’t been done in months. Then I moved to the back of the boat to the smaller guest room where the other unit sets under the bed and sucked water out of that and noticed the filter was dirty which will cause the unit to run hot. So I cleaned that. Now we are good with everything. Oh yeah, yesterday morning the freezer wasn’t working right and we noticed the little red light was blinking near the compressor which indicates over heating. We forgot to hook the fan back up when we came onboard and it has been hot which means the water is hot causing the boat to be hotter than normal and with the added heat the compressor faulted. So we opened the compartment lid where the compressors for the refrigerator and freezer are and let it cool. In the meantime Dave shut the
freezer off for a while until the compressor was cooled. The freezer was turned back on and it is working just fine. We didn’t hook the fan up but during the day when it is hot we open the compartment to let the hot air out and then close it at night. So all is well. There is always something that needs to be tended to when we come. That is just boat life. So tomorrow, our mission, is to get a tarp to cover starting in front of the windshield of the dodger to the mast. The purpose of the tarp is to keep the bird guano off the boat! The tarp we had on the boat was in shreds but it did it’s job. Then I have to launder the sheets and dirty clothes and we leave Friday morning to return in December.

I drank my morning coffee in the cockpit where it was cool. A little breeze is coming up. Feels like it will be a little cooler today. Dave walked to town to see about getting a tarp but didn’t find one the size we need. He is going to walk further north of the store he went to and see if they have any. I needed to walk so I went with him and we were successful in finding not only the right size tarp but a light bulb for my kitchen light in Bahia. We stopped at the marina that is north of where we keep our boat and saw a couple of people we know so we chatted for a while. That marina is old and it fell apart when the last hurricane, Jimena,(sp?) came through about 3 years ago. The moorage is cheaper but the marina isn’t well kept. Anyway---we talked to our friends Jim and Casey and then walked back to Fonatur marina where we are. Dave took the tarp and light bulb to the boat while I went to the laundry room to wash a load of clothes. Then it was lunch time. Not much going on today!!! After lunch I went up and put the clothes in the dryer and stayed in the laundry room until they were dry. I brought a book to read while I waited. When the clothes were dry and folded, I went back to the boat. Some of the floor boards were up as Dave was in the process of cleaning the water maker filter and unit and then re-pickling it. I was so sleepy I wanted to take a nap but if I did I would sleep too long and not be ready for bed tonight. So I played games on my computer and actually was able to get onto the internet long enough to check emails. I was able to look at all the mail and then I lost the internet signal. It is getting worse instead of better. I can remember we could be on the computer for hours on the boat. Now we barely get a signal and to get one we either have to go out into the cockpit (which is too hot and humid) or go up to the marina office. I didn’t feel like hassling with it so I chose to just shut down my computer. I managed to stay awake packing up our stuff and putting things away. We will be leaving tomorrow for Bahia. There were some clouds that came in and it cooled us down a little then they went away. Later in the afternoon clouds were building again and it looked like we might get rain, but by the time the sun went down behind the hill, the clouds were gone. Now that the sun is down we can go out and put the tarp on. It is just the right size so it didn’t take us long to get it secured. It will help keep the bird guano off the boat. Once the tarp was in place I went down below and fixed dinner. We had burritos. After the dishes were washed and stowed I packed more things and turned the propane off. I made sandwiches for us tomorrow and all we have to do is pack the cooler with what is in the refrigerator and turn things off and stow the electrical cords and water hose. Then it is 2 trips to the jeep to pack it and we are on our way to the house.

I have been taking my medicine and drinking lots of water and am starting to feel a little more energetic. That is until this morning. I didn’t want to get up and it took me a while to wake up. As long as I was moving around I was o.k. I just hope I can stay awake tomorrow for the 5 hour trip home.

Well I did it. I took a 5 hour energy drink before leaving the boat and this time it seemed to be more effective. We stopped in a town called Vizcaino to get groceries. This time they had a lot of fresh vegetables and fruit. When I was finished we took off for home. It was windy for the ride home but not too bad. Dave said that Bahia was getting their northern winds and it would blow for 3 days. When we got to Bahia we stopped and got gas and went on to the grocery store to pick up milk and some other items. We had taken the truck to Philipi on the way to Santa Rosalia to ask him to fix the gas gauge and a couple other things. Unfortunately he only was able to look at and fix one of the items. He got pulled off our truck for a hotter job. So Dave drove the truck while I drove the jeep to the house.

Home sweet home. Everything looks good and so now we cart all the stuff from the jeep up the stairs into the house. I put the groceries away and decided to unpack at a later time, either later that afternoon or tomorrow. The rest of the evening was quiet. It is windy here and it is suppose to blow harder tomorrow. Oh yea!!!

Things have been unpacked and put away and I have straightened up the house a bit. Still not feeling up to par so I am taking it easy. I read most of the day. The wind was blowing about 25-30 miles an hour and we had to shut the windows a little, otherwise things have a tendency to blow off shelves!! The skylights are closed so we just wait for the wind to subside. About 1:00pm Dave and I heard a crash and wondered what was going on. At first it sounded like a BIG bird landing on the roof so I went out on the deck to look on the roof and our TV dish antenna had come loose from part of the stand. It was just barely hanging on. We went over to our neighbors house to get his tall ladder and we put it up on the south side of the house out of the wind. But the problem was we couldn’t get on the roof to do anything because it was blowing too hard. As we were getting the ladder situated the antenna came loose from the stand and fell over on the south side of the house just outside the dining room window. It put a rip in the window screen but other than that everything was alright. We were very lucky as I expected to be hit with the dish as I was standing right under where it flew off. I put my arms over my head so if the dish hit me my head wouldn’t be bonked!!! Well the good Lord was watching out for us and the dish never disconnected from the cables that were attached to the house and run in the house to the TV. So now Dave had to climb the ladder and unscrew the cables and bring the dish down. Once it was on the ground it was inspected and we found metal between the 2 holes for the pop rivets was cracked. Dave would have to reinforce that before it goes up again. He found some scrap sheet metal and because we didn’t have tin snips he had to saw at it. He wasn’t getting very far and I was trying to hold down the metal for him and I was getting tired. I suggested he use garden shears but he said they probably wouldn’t cut. Well after a bunch of sawing on Dave’s part, I walked over and got the garden shears and he had his doubts but tried them and low and behold he was able to cut the piece he needed for repairs!!! I have to brag at this point because I’m not always correct in some things, but this time-----I knew I was right!!! So yahoo and good on ME!!!! He was very surprised and managed to get out----”good job”!!! We then proceeded to repair the top part of the dish and Dave had to drill a couple more holes for the rivets to go. The wind is still howling so there was no way that dish was getting on the roof right then. We just have to wait. In the meantime, the ladder is still in position and Dave said he would have to go up and check to see if the stand was still bolted down to the roof and everything else was o.k. But then he asked me if I would go up. Well I said I would. I climbed to the top of the ladder where I could see the roof and the stand and all was good. Everything was intact. So hopefully the wind will calm down later and we can get the dish back up. Otherwise, no TV tonight. It really isn’t a big deal not to have TV as we cruised without it for months. And even when we moved into the house we didn’t have the direct TV hooked up so we just watched movies. Dave and I went back to reading and waited for the wind to die but it didn’t die soon enough and it was dark so no getting the dish up today. It is suppose to be less wind tomorrow so we will just have to wait and see. We left the ladder up against the house and wondered later if that was such a good idea as the wind switched around and came out of the south then west. If it blew hard enough the ladder would fall and possibly bend it all up and/or break our kitchen window. Oops!!!! We watched a movie we had and went to bed when it was over. Then when we heard the wind blow from a different direction we were unable to get into a deep sleep because of the ladder. Needless to say we made it through the night and so did the ladder. Whew!!

It was breezy this morning when we got up and then it laid down enough to where Dave could get on the roof to inspect the holes where the rivets go. To his dismay he had to pound out a couple rivets, as they broke off and stayed in the stand, and then 2 more rivets that had broken wouldn’t budge so he will have to drill them out. Unfortunately, his drill isn’t charged so he has to wait until it is before he can pop rivet the antenna dish on the stand. So he came down and just shortly after that the wind picked up. It isn’t as bad as yesterday, but it is still too dangerous to be on the ladder and roof. So again we wait.

I am drinking so much water and juice that I think I will bloat up and float away------. I feel better but that funny feeling hasn’t gone away yet. I have the last pill to take this afternoon and then we shall see. I will need to keep up the large amounts of water for the rest of the week and then we will see what happens. I’m really hoping it will disappear!

I finished the book I was reading, which was a really good one. The title is ’Journey from Darkness’ and it is about 2 brothers and the desert elephants of Africa. It is based on a true story. Now I am reading a murder mystery. The wind is still howling, but today it is about 20-25 miles per hour, so it is better. It looks as though the antenna dish isn’t going up tonight. We have lots of movies so we will watch another one tonight. The wind is suppose to die tonight and become benign tomorrow. So looks like Dave will get a chance to go on the roof again and do his magic!!!!!!! HA!!

I was cross stitching this afternoon and watched some birds diving for fish. They didn’t look like seagulls so I got my binoculars and checked it out. To my surprise they were boobies. I told Dave I thought they were and then I saw one of them get ready to dive and it had blue feet!!!! Wow!!! That was exciting as I haven’t seen them here before. They aren’t many places around here where they roost. On the mainland there is an island where they call home off of Mazatlan and cruisers can go there to see them. We never did because the conditions for anchoring were not the safest. We had heard of cruisers getting their anchor hooked on rocks and debris so we avoided the area. We did get to see a couple that flew close to the boat but didn‘t get pictures. Since they were right out front of the house I took some pictures and we’ll see if they turn out. We have a different camera then my last one so I have to learn how to use it. My other camera still works but the button that you push to take the picture is getting stuck and when you turn off the camera it snaps a picture at random. I’ve had it way before we went cruising and I am surprised, with the elements of the sea and weather, it survived this long. Well it is time to fix a cocktail for Dave-----L I can’t have any until the medicine is out of my system. Oh well---I will survive!

People are heading down from San Diego so some of the gals have been chomping at the bit to play cards. I was invited but didn’t feel up to it as I am still not totally healed yet. Besides I am not ready to get with the ladies yet.

The bladder infection is not cleared up and I am getting concerned about it. I could go to the clinic here but they don’t have any means to test a urine sample and I would have to drive to Guerrero Negro which is 2 hours from here to have it done then have to go back and etc., etc.,. So Dave suggested that maybe I should start on Amoxicillin as that is for soft tissue infections. I checked on the internet about it being used as a treatment for bladder infections and it said it was good. The Amoxicillin that we have is 500mg so I started taking one capsule every 8 hours as recommended. I drank lots of water and kept on that regiment for 7 days. I did stop at the clinic to see if they had any Amoxicillin, which they were out of but they did have bladder infection medication. So that is good to know. I still have plenty of Amoxicillin but one day I will need to get more. I am finally over the infection and back to normal. Thank goodness. That was not fun!

I have gotten together with the gals for cards and train and decided I won’t be playing every single week like I was doing last year. I get burned out being with the gals all the time so I am picking and choosing when I want to play.

Dave and I were invited to a friends 70+ birthday party but we weren’t sure if we would get to go as the jeep had trouble starting. Unfortunately a door had been left ajar so the battery was low. Dave charged it earlier and the jeep did start so we headed across the bay to the party. We had a good time and there were a lot of people there we knew. They made pizza dough so everyone could make one or more individual pizzas. They put out several toppings and cheese and had people line up to receive the dough with pizza sauce and move along the table choosing what you wanted to put on it. Rainy and Dennis made a brick oven in their front yard for cooking pizzas and they enjoy having pizza parties from time to time. It was a fun party and we said our goodbyes and got in the jeep to leave but when Dave turned over the key it didn’t sound too good. The jeep did start but we were worried about getting all the way home. The play we were at is across the bay from where our house is and you have to drive through the dessert and it was pitch black out. We did manage to follow our landlords across the desert so that was good and hoped we didn’t have to stop along the way!! We made it home safely and the next day Dave found a dead battery. Well all I have to say is thank goodness we were able to make it home from Washington State, Santa Rosalia (where the boat is) and Rincon (where the party was) without a problem. Now we have to get a new battery. If we buy one in town here they usually don’t last longer than a year. We do have an option as we have neighbors coming down in a few days so we asked if they could bring us a Costco battery. We gave them the information and they said they could do that. We will pay them when they get here. It is better to do it this way than to have to buy another battery later.

We have our battery and the jeep is back up and running!!!! Speaking of running, I had to go into town for groceries and gas. My normal Saturday morning ride into town. I drive the beater truck and it has been good so far but we baby it to make it last as long as possible. That is our Baja vehicle. We don’t drive the jeep around here as the road is terrible and hard on the suspension and tires. Anyway---I was almost to town when the truck started to slow and I had no power. Uh Oh!!!! Now what. I filled the tank 2 weeks ago so it couldn’t be that I’m out of gas!!!! I had the VHF radio with me so I called Dave and our first thoughts were of someone siphoning the gas out of the tank. Well that couldn’t happen as it has a lock on the gas cap. Well next we thought of the fuel pump. My good friend, Penny heard me call Dave, and asked if everything was alright and I told her no. She sent her husband Murrey to bring gas and check things out. Well to make this long story short-----the fuel pump was fine and I WAS out of gas!!!! I guess when I filled up 2 weeks prior, I filled a gas can first and then the truck tank and heard it gurgle like it was going to spill out so I shut it off and figured the tank was full. Well it wasn’t!!!! Once Murrey put some gas in the truck and the fuel lines were full, the truck started and ran and he followed me to the gas station. Yep!!!! It was empty!!! I thanked Murrey and called Penny to tell her all was good and I would have them over for dinner as payment. I got my groceries and headed for home. I was really relieved it was just a gas problem and not anything mechanical. All is good now!!! We found out that we probably won’t get the fuel tank fixed so it will show us how much or little the tank has in it as we think the wires that go to the sensor were disconnected and won’t be able to be fixed. So now we are back to writing our treks to town on the calendar and fill up on the 3rd trip. There is a reason they call it a Baja car!!! Ha!!

Happy Anniversary to Jonathan and Susannah Adcock on their first year of marriage!!!! May they always be happy! October 27, 20013.

The neighborhood is starting to fill up. Tom and Lynn were able to bring my medication down from the states which I am grateful for. Most of the neighbors are coming down for a community meeting with our new land lease owner. That will happen on November 15.

The weather has continued to be warm which is unbelievable as last year mid October the switch was flipped and we had wind and it was cool. We are still in the 80’s. Loving it!!! There was one night it did get cool enough for me to put slipper socks on and flannels. But that didn’t last long.

Since the weather has cooled a bit we are seeing more spiders and bugs come into the house. Our screen doors on the sliding glass doors need replacing and the bugs get in around and under the door. Anyway--one night we saw a pretty good size spider on the wall by our bed so we killed it. It was a hairy guy. A couple years ago we had a similar one and he was huge!!! We thought we wouldn’t see another one for a while but low and behold a day or two I was heading out the door going to play Train when I opened the screen and inside the door jam was this hairy spider like what we saw the other day. I had to leave since it is a 45 minute drive to town so I asked Dave to take care of him but to save it. I want to find out what kind of spider it is and if it is dangerous. It looks like it could do some harm. So Dave sprayed it and when I got home from Train I found it on the counter in a zip lock bag. I got my magnifying glass out and took a good look at it and discovered it had 8 eyes. A row of 4 and another one row of 4 above those. So I started searching the internet trying to find this spider and I did. It is called a Hunter spider. It is found in warm climates and eats bugs. It can grow as large as a tarantula and they could cause some discomfort if bitten. They are called a Hunter as they have the tendency to move in all directions to get to their pray. Their legs are higher than the body which resembles the tarantula . So now I know what it is. I threw it away and then later when it was gone thought that I should have taken a picture of it. But if you want to see it just search Hunter spider and you will find it. It was kind of interesting!! I guess they get really big in Australia.

Happy Halloween and Birthday to Dave!!!! We are going to a party and I am dressing as a Pixie. Dave is whatever anybody thinks he is. He wore his white pirate shirt, black jeans and a black belt. We don’t have much in the way of costumes. I borrowed the wings and developed my character from that. Anyway it was a great party and we had good food and fun!!!

Remnants of Vacation Then Bahia Bound

We started the day with a potluck breakfast and all kinds of good eats were enjoyed. After breakfast we went off to the farmers market to see what goodies they had. As usual there were the vegetables, fruit, food booths, ice cream, pastry and all that but what I wanted to see were the craft booths. There were a lot of really nice crafts but nothing I couldn’t live without. Last year we didn’t have much for breakfast so we were hungry for lunch. We ate this morning around 10:00am and were stuffed so we didn’t have anything even ice cream!!!! What a shame!! Oh well. We walked back to the boat and spent the rest of the day just chillin. We joked about going up the slew again in the dinghy but somehow no one wanted a repeat of last year when we all got soaked!!!! The people who hosted the weekend from the yacht club tried to get a ferry ride trip to Hat Island which is directly across from the Everett Marina, but they have stopped their free shuttle going and coming for the year so we didn’t go. We could have gone in the dinghy but Ron was backed into the slip and it would have been pretty hard to get the dinghy in the water.

We all went to the Scuttlebutt restaurant for dinner Sunday night. They fit us all in the back room which was great. There were about 17 people who went to dinner. Not everyone wanted to eat out. We had an awesome waitress so I hope everyone tipped her well. She was fun. After dinner there was movie night on the party dock. The movie was shown on the white cloth hooked to the host boat and we watched the movie ‘Mud’ with one of my favorite actors, Mathew McConnahey. The host served kettle corn and we brought what we wanted to drink with us. It was a fun night! Tomorrow the majority of us leave to come back to Brownsville.

The next morning we said our goodbyes to all and thanked our host for a great weekend and headed for home. A couple of boats from the yacht club stayed another day and one of them was heading north for their vacation. The weather was good and the water smooth.

Noreen is back to work, darn, and Dave and Ron are back to getting things attached and secured for the heater. Dave is almost at the end. Matter of fact he hopes to be completely done by Monday the 9th. That will be a great relief as he has been the one to crawl around in the tight spots and get all the wires and hoses run and hooked up. Whew!!!! Poor guys had to be a pretzel working long hours and only breaking for breakfast, and lunch. Sometimes he would skip lunch as he was so busy with stuff. He would always be done before Noreen got home and things were put back together.

Our plan is to leave here at the end of the week and be on the road heading south around the 13th or 14th. Unfortunately we will miss Carolyn and J.T.’s son (Christian) graduation from art school which is Sunday the 15th. We have to get home as hurricanes are revving up south of Cabo San Lucas and this is the time of year they have a habit of turning right instead of left and going out to sea. So we need to be back to Bahia and close to the boat so if a hurricane does move up the Sea of Cortez we will be there to secure everything and get the lines tied to the pilings instead of the dock. We have only been through a drill for a hurricane and thank goodness nothing happened, but weather is a strange phenomena and does whatever it wants and we have no control over it so we need to be prepared.

On Sunday the 8th Noreen made crab bisque on the dock. It is her older sisters’ recipe and they have done the party on the dock to celebrate then end of crabbing season and summer. A lot of people were there. Noreen had her some of her family there, lots of people that we know from the yacht club and those who live on their boats came to celebrate with us. Here is the progression on how it was made. The rue is the base of the bisque and that is made from boiling the crab shells. Fleeta, Ron and Noreen’s neighbor did that and added vegetables then froze it until we were ready to make the bisque. This is a cajun family recipe. Sunday afternoon a big stainless steel pot was put on a propane burner and the rue was add to the pot. It was heated and then that is where many hands got involved stirring and adding ingredients. Some of the ingredients I can remember going in it was old bay seasoning, lemon, sherry, crab of course, lots of butter and heavy cream. Here are some of the pictures of the progression and ingredients.




Once it was cooked, we ate and it was marvelous!!!! Very, very flavorful. There was lots of food so no one went hungry. Everyone brought a side dish and what they wanted to drink. It was a lot of fun and a wonderful way to end the summer. We have missed it for the last 4 years because of always having to go home around the first of September, but because of Dave putting in the furnace we are here longer.

We thought we would be able to leave Monday or Tuesday but there is still more work for Dave to do on the furnace. So we are pushing for either Thursday or Friday.

It seems just when Dave thinks he is going to be finished with the furnace something happens and parts are needed or troubleshooting done. In the meantime I am getting most of the items on my wish list, watching spending as we are getting low in the checking account. We’ve had to get all new tires for the jeep, new zippers for the mesh enclosure for the boat and a new bimini. That cost more than we thought it was going to. So it is only money right???? Easy come, easy go???? So we are watching the amount we spend. Once I have the important stuff on my list bought, I bide my time starting another afghan, this time for E.J. He picked his colors and it will take me a year working on it off and on. I am still working on the dragon cross stitch as well. I am trying to keep up my exercises and walking routine.

Went and saw the doctor for a physical and all is well. Got my shingles vaccination and all I need now is a colonoscopy. He put in the referral and I just have to wait and see when it can be done. Well unfortunately I’m not getting it done this summer as they can’t get me in until the middle of the month. That is just for the office visit. Then an appointment for the colonoscopy a week or two later. Just not going to happen this year. I told the doctor I would get it done next year. I am up to date on all my medical stuff so that will be the only thing to have done when I come back to the states.

Dave has informed me we will be leaving on Tuesday the 17th which means we WILL be here for Christians’ celebration. So I started walking the beach looking for rocks and shells to make his signature character. It was on his invitation and it was the first character he made in art school. I found some rocks and shells and rinsed them, let them dry and started gluing the character together. Unfortunately the weather has cooled and is damp so the glue isn’t setting hard. Bummer. I worked on the face first and made the eyes from barnacles and stuffed them with the tips of ear plugs. Then cut the tip of a beaded sewing pin and glued it on the ear plugs. I took a barnacle and broke it so I had two pieces for the front teeth. Once those were glued I took the cotton tip off a Q-tip and spread it underneath the teeth for the rest of the teeth and glued that. I used the plastic ring that is left on the water bottle after the cap is removed as the mouth. Then I glued 2 muscle shells onto a rock to use as his feet. Then I used an oval rock for the body and shells for the arms and hands. Anyway---I thought I was all done and brought it down inside the boat and set it up and was letting it dry thoroughly before I did the final sealant spray. No one touched it and it fell over and broke!!!!! That was on Friday the 13th and I needed it done by Sunday!!!! I was very discouraged but decided I would figure out a better way to make it. The head was good but unfortunately the body was too big and with the head, to top heavy. So back to the drawing board. The next day I walked the beach again in search of different items and brought them back to make another body. It ended up being shorter but it worked. I sprayed the sealant on it and it was finished!!!! That will be Christian’s gift from us.




Christian’s celebration party was a success and there were a lot of family and friends to help him celebrate. Unfortunately the weather didn’t co-operate and it thunder and lightning most of the afternoon. Dave and Ron showed up at the start but then went back to the boat to work on the furnace. Dave needs to get that furnace running. There was lots of food and drink and Christian had bought cigars for me, Dave, Ron, his mom, dad and brother to smoke in celebration. Unfortunately I had to take Ron and Dave’s to them as they never came back up. I think Christian was glad at least one of us was there to have the celebratory smoke with him!!! It was a great day for him and we are very proud of him and know he will go far and make a name for himself!!! Awesome!!

Monday, while Dave was doing the last bit of tinkering on the furnace, I took all the clothes and stuff I needed to pack in the large suitcase, to storage where it was and packed. I was able to get most of the stuff I bought in the suitcase so now Dave won’t get stressed out about where to put it. We had 2 duffle bags with the screens and bimini for the boat to go in the jeep so there wasn’t a lot of room with those and our 2 large suitcases. We took the large suitcases because we packed bulky clothes and shoes and such for NW weather in case it was cold. Then we had our overnight bags with smaller amount of travel clothes and toiletries. It was a very successful day as Dave got the furnace running. Yippee!!!!! He did it!!! Ron was a happy camper. Now the boat will get warm and be much dryer. It’s amazing how damp a boat gets when it’s been damp outside.

Now we can concentrate on packing and loading up the car. The last of the packing was done and we loaded it all in the back of the jeep and then said our goodbyes to Ron. We had already given Noreen hugs before bedtime last night. So now we are on our way to McMinnville, Oregon to see my niece, Sandi. I haven’t seen her in a long time. It will be good to see her and catch up.

We arrived at Sandi’s Wednesday afternoon. The weather was cloudy and it did sprinkle a little but otherwise it was good. Andy was at work so Sandi and us had a good time visiting. She looks really good and she is taking good care of herself. We are only staying overnight. Need to move on to Brookings to see the people who are interested in buying our boat.

When Andy got home from work, we sat and talked and Sandi made dinner and then afterwards we watched NCIS and NCIS Los Angeles which is 2 of our favorite shows as well. Sandi fixed us popcorn for desert. Then it was time for bed. Andy will be gone in the morning, but Sandi will be there when we get up.

I am very proud of Sandi. She has come a long way and I think she is finally figuring things out. Sometimes it takes us a while but we eventually get there. As we were getting our things together, the horse shoeing man came and was putting new shoes on Sandi’s horses. She has 2 very pretty ones. We said our goodbyes and vowed to see each other again next year. Maybe we will be able to stay a little longer. We left and got to Kristi and Roberts house in Brookings, Oregon around 5:00pm. We had a cocktail and snacks then we went to dinner. They took us to a great little place that serves martini’s and other different mixed drinks and good food. We had a good visit and they are great people. One thing they hated to tell us was the sale of one of their homes fell through so they can’t purchase our boat yet. We kind of figured something like that because Dave had talked to Robert earlier. No worries. Of course both Robert and Kristi and us are disappointed, but Robert and Kristi haven’t given up yet. They have to have the house they want to sell appraised and then put it back on the market. The price on the house was too high and for some reason the appraisal never got finished which caused the house to be listed too high. so now maybe they will be able to list the house at a lower price and it will sell. You never know how things are going to go in the housing and boat selling business. I think Robert and Kristi will remain our friends and we will be able to see them from time to time. They share a house in Loreto, Baja California Sur with Roberts brother. That is south from where we live and they come down around this time of year to stay for a while. So we are back to square one again with the boat, but like I believe, the time isn’t right yet. God will lead us and it will be great!!!! I have learned from experience!!! I don’t know what is best for us but He does!
We stayed overnight at Robert and Kristi’s and then we hit the road again. This time we are stopping to see my sister in Ukiah, CA. It too will be a short visit, as we need to be in Santa Rosalia, the first of October to pay moorage and also we will be closer to the boat in case a hurricane develops. There was one that came up the Sea of Cortez not too long ago, but it didn’t come as far north as Santa Rosalia. It crossed over to the mainland and wrecked havoc there. So far so good.

We had a good visit with my sister and Hig. It was very good to see them. They took us to Applebee’s for dinner then went back to the house and I checked email and Dave played pool with Hig. We didn’t get a chance to see Larry and Sheila as it was their anniversary and they had plans. It’s hard to see everyone on such a short visit. Next time!

When we left my sister’s, Dave drove for hours trying to get to Lois and Larry’s (our Mexico house landlords), but there was so much traffic (and this was a Saturday) we didn’t make it. We made it to the hotel at 6:00pm. It had been a long day. Lois and Larry had plans that evening so we couldn’t get together with them. We will see them in Bahia when they come down.

Because Dave was so tired from driving and me from sitting in the car for hours, I suggested we stay an extra day and go to Costco (which is across the street from the hotel) in the morning and that way we wouldn’t need to stop in Ensenada. Or so I thought. The next morning we took our time getting up and eventually walked to Costco and picked up a few things and went back to the hotel. We checked emails and I used the exercise equipment, came back, took a shower then went and sat outside by the pool. It was a very nice and warm day and it felt good. Not too hot or cold!!! When I returned to the room Dave was watching football. I watched a little with him and then I looked up on line where the nearest Walmart was. We found that it was within walking distance of the hotel so Dave and I walked about 3 or 4 city blocks to a shopping plaza where we found the Walmart. We looked around and decided we would wait and stop in Ensenada at the T.V.s but decided to wait and see if we could get a better deal somewhere else. Right now we are borrowing an old big T.V. from a friend in Bahia and we’ve been wanting to buy a more economical one so it won’t use so much power. But not yet. We walked back to the hotel and waited a bit before going to dinner. When we got back from dinner and came back to watch T.V.; then went to bed. We have to get an early start in the morning as we are crossing the boarder at Tecate. We don’t like crossing at Tijuana. The weather was sunny and comfortable so it was an enjoyable ride. The drive from Tecate to Ensenada is a beautiful one as it goes through the vineyards and farmland. It is very green and enjoyable. We got to Ensenada and decided to stop at Walmart where I got what I needed and then went to Costco, which is across the street to see if I could get tuna in the foil packets. They had them so a I got 2 boxes of them. There is 8 packets in each box. That will last me a while until we come back in November. We were hoping we could make it home tonight, but by the time we shopped and got something to eat, it was early afternoon and we wouldn’t have gotten home until about 6 or 7 that evening. So we decided to stay at one of our favorite places in San Quintin named ‘Jardines’!!! The name means garden and it truly is. They grow their own citrus and all kinds of plants. Little birds are chirping everywhere and it is just a relaxing place to be. The restaurant isn’t open on Mondays so we tried one not far from the hotel named ‘The Mill’. It was a really interesting place. Apparently a mill use to be there and it had all the memorabilia from those days. The dinner was good and we had a great time. Back at the hotel we watched a movie and around 10:00pm called it a night. We both were very tired.

We are on the road again and heading home. We should be at the house around 1 or 2. It will be good to sleep in our own bed and not have to ride in the jeep for a while. However, we do have to leave for Santa Rosalia on the 30th. But a few days in between will be nice. In a couple days we were unpacked and things were back to normal. I then started cleaning the art room as it is a total disaster!! It will take me a while to get all the shells and rocks and stuff organized and put away but when I am done it will be wonderful.

Today is the 30th of September and we are heading south to Santa Rosalia. We will be putting on the new side curtains and bimini. That will be great.

When we arrived the weather was warm but not hot and there was a nice breeze blowing. It had been in the 90’s in Bahia and usually Santa Rosalia is hotter. Maybe the weather is starting to cool. Before leaving Bahia I was not feeling too well. I was feeling as though I was getting a bladder infection. I was drinking lots of fluids but couldn’t get rid of the nagging ache and discomfort. Since we were going to Santa Rosalia I would ask Isabel, who manages the marina, if there is an English speaking doctor in town and get this taken care of. Somehow I doubt there is but I’m going to try. My Spanish is not developed enough to have a conversation with a doctor let alone anyone else!!!! Ha!!! I wish I had learned when I was young. Learning as an adult is much more difficult! I thought we would relax tonight and start working on the boat tomorrow, but Dave wanted to put the bimini on. He rinsed down the stainless steel and I dried it off. Then we both took stainless steel cleaner and went over the stainless steel to remove imbedded rust and dirt, and then the bimini went on. It looks nice!!! Poor old one had seen it’s better days and we were keeping it together with sail tape!!! Tomorrow the side curtains go on.

I spoke to Isabel about seeing an English speaking doctor and she said there is a doctor in town that knows a little English and she refers boaters who need medical attention to him. It is the same doctor I went to 3 or 4 years ago when I had a bladder and kidney infection. I was glad to be going back to him as he was very nice. At that time we were still cruising and we were getting ready to head south to La Paz. The marina manager, Carlos, at that time, sent his wife with me to interpret what the doctor said. Isabel said she would call the doctors office in the morning and see if she can get an appointment. It was late in the afternoon and she was getting ready to go home. She gets in at 9:00am so I will see her then.

A Fun Vacation In The San Juans and Canada

As we got closer to Sidney I took some pictures,



and once we got into the channel for the marina we had to wait our turn for the Customs dock. When we got to the dock and tied up, Ron was the only one who could be off the boat until after check-in. All went well and we were given our slip assignment which was on the other side of the customs dock. We helped Fleeta tie up to the customs dock and then while she was checking in we got back to the boat and put things back together. Dave and I helped a sailboat get off the customs dock as the wind was not being kind to them. After Fleeta got checked in and got her slip assignment I walked down to help her. The rest of the gang walked the dogs and used the facilities. When I arrived at the dock where Fleeta was to pull in there was a dock guy there. He said it had been a very busy morning and pretty crazy. Once Fleeta’s boat was tied to the dock I walked to the facilities and met Dave to get the key to the restroom as they only issued one to us because they didn’t have enough that day to give us 2. But we will be able to get another one tomorrow. Dave grabbed a dock cart to bring to the boat and we loaded it with garbage and recycle. The dogs had been walked so they got locked inside the boat while we took the garbage up, dumped it and then went to the Pub. J.T., Carolyn and Fleeta were still securing their boat and getting things put away so if they join us at the Pub it won’t be until later. Fleeta and Carolyn showed up after we had finished our late lunch/dinner and were on our second after dinner drink. They had a drink with us and then we walked to the farmers market up the street. They have one every Thursday from 5:30pm to 8:30pm. There were all kinds of fresh vegetables, fruits, bread, jams, and everything you find at a farmers market. We saw some interesting crafts too and heard good music. We picked up a few things but we will have to do some real grocery shopping tomorrow. As we were walking back to our boats, Fleeta, who is on dock E, said goodbye and headed to her boat as we headed to ours on dock G. We had a quiet evening and were able to watch a little T.V. It was amazing we got reception. We saw a program on the Seattle World’s Fair. It was interesting.

So now it is Friday, cloudy with sprinkles and Noreen and I are up washing clothes. Laundry and drying is $2.50 each Canadian and both of us only had one load. They have a great laundry facility which includes free WiFi, black leather chairs, and 3 TVs. The marina is beautiful with the flower baskets hanging everywhere and everyone is friendly. Check out is at 11:00am so we watched the boat parade this morning while still on the boat. There was a lot of mega yachts that headed out. Looks like most of the boats are heading north. We are here today then we think we will head out for Sidney Spit and anchor out for a couple days. The weather is suppose to clear up and be nice for the rest of our vacation so that will be nice. Once Noreen and I are finished with laundry, we will take it back to the boat then head for the grocery store. We noticed yesterday that people bring the shopping carts from the Fairway Market store and off load on the dock to their boats and then return the cart to the entrance of the marina. It works pretty well. So we grabbed a cart and headed to the market. We had made a list prior to going so we had a plan on what meals we wanted to have and shopped accordingly. We had the check-out gal split the bill so Noreen paid for half and I paid the other half. It worked out pretty well. We took the groceries to the boat, unloaded and when groceries were put away Noreen and I walked back up to town; depositing the shopping basket with the others at the head of the marina and went window shopping. Carolyn, J.T. and Fleeta had walked up before us to do their grocery shopping. When they were finished, Carolyn joined us as we were still looking in stores. We went through a couple stores and ended up at a consignment shop. We had fun looking around in there. Because it was getting to be 5:00pm, we knew the stores were going to be closed soon so we started walking back toward the marina. We stopped in a store that had shoes 50% off, but no one spent any money. The last stop was the liquor store where wine and champagne was bought. Back to the boat we went. Carolyn said they might come over after dinner. We finished dinner and I was doing dishes when they showed up. We had a nice visit then they left and we went to bed.

The next morning we had to be out of the marina at 11:00am so we secured the boat for travel then Noreen and I walked the dogs and stopped at the liquor store to buy a couple more big bottles of wine. We saw another couple with a female pug and so Callie and Jack had a friend to sniff. After that we headed back to the boat and got lines untied and electrical unhooked and we were on our way. It was 11:00am. Right on time. We decided last night to go to Mill Bay instead of Sidney Spit so that is where we are headed. Very smooth water today, and still cloudy but warm. It didn’t take us long to get to Mill Bay and we had called ahead and were told there was no room as there was a sailing club in. As we milled about outside the marina we called again and the marina guy was on the dock and told us we could tie up on the outside of the marina. So we did and Fleeta was able to fit behind us. We are staying 2 nights. The marina is small but really cute. There is a Bistro at the head of the marina so after tying up and getting secured we headed up there. Fleeta and crew had lunch already, so they stayed behind. We had a wonderful lunch!!! The food was really good! We were stuffed. There were townhouses being build right behind the marina and there was an open house so we went and took a look. The marina is trying to sell them to help pay for the marina. Oh my gosh!!!! It was gorgeous!!!! Guess how much???? It had a view of the marina and beyond. Give up?? $970,000.00!!!! Not too bad eh??! Here are some pictures of the marina and Bistro.



After drooling over the townhouse we walked back to the boat. We moved a picnic table in front of Ron and Noreen’s boat as it cut the breeze down. It wasn’t really windy, just the wind was a little on the cool side. Ron got his BBQ off the boat and his portable table and set up for later when we would all gather for dinner and conversation. Ron, Carolyn, myself, Fleeta and J.T. were sitting at the picnic table while the pugs, Callie and Jack were roaming around. The docks were cement but were separated between each section so they had a heavy duty rubber bridge over the middle of the docks so you could cross. Dave and Noreen decided to go up to the office to do something and they were almost to the end where you make a right and continue up the dock to the marine office and Bistro. Jack is blind in one eye and his other eye is not so good either and when he saw his ‘mom’ take off without him he wanted to go too. We all called to him to come back but he is stubborn and was on a mission as he headed to the split in the dock. As he got closer to the split it looked as though he was going to turn a little left to make it over the rubber bridge but instead walked straight and ended up in the water. I yelled ‘JACK’ and went running to get him. When I got to the edge he was swimming toward the bulb kelp but couldn’t pass it so he turned around, plus he heard my voice and was coming toward me. I tried to grab his harness but had trouble. Before I knew it Noreen was across from me trying to grab his harness too. She was successful and pulled him up, but because he weighs 30 pounds, she couldn’t lift him up out of the water and over the dock. She called for Ron to grab him but J.T. was there standing over her and he grabbed Jack and brought him to safety. He also saved Noreen’s phone from dropping in the water. We were all in a state of panic about Jack and all of us were relieved to have him safe but not more than Noreen!!!! She was shaking from the incident. Jack just shook the water off and then decided to prance around like a dog who felt good. Salt water is good for his skin and he itches a lot so actually for him it felt good. Plus he got cooled off. Noreen dried him and Jack was acting like a young dog running around and having a good time. We all were very nervous after that about both pugs getting near the edge of the dock. It all turned out well and Noreen and Dave went and did what they were going to do in the first place and the rest of us relaxed and kept an eye on the dogs. Jack swims, but when we were trying to get a hold of him, his head was barely out of the water and his front paws were paddling hard and his butt and hind legs were facing down. So I was glad we were able to get him back safely.

That evening we BBQ’d on the dock and had a pleasant evening.


The next day two other people from the Brownsville Yacht club joined us. We made reservations for them and they arrived in the morning. Bob and Diane on their 25 ft M/V, ‘One More Time‘, and Rich and Taffy on their 45 ft M/V ‘Scottish Mist‘. After hellos were said a group of us decided to walk up about a couple blocks to the little shopping center and get a few things.


So it was Ron, Noreen, Carolyn, J.T., Bob, Diane, Dave and I. We went through the stores that were open, did some looking around, went to the Great Canadian Dollar Store, the grocery store and ended up at the liquor store. Then from there and in the same shopping area we went to a pub and had some snacks and drinks. You couldn’t just have drinks you had to order something to eat so we did. Then it was back to the boats to relax. Being we were tied to the outside of the dock facing the open bay, we did get rocked a rolled a few times by big boats crossing back and forth from north to south and vise versa. At night it was perfectly quiet and calm. The sun came out and it was a beautiful warm day. We ordered pizza and had it delivered for dinner. It was a fun evening!


The next morning we left Mill Bay Marina and headed for Todd Inlet which is behind Buchart Gardens near Victoria. Once you get into Canada, most of the places you want to go are close together. We had another couple show up from the Yacht Club, Paul and Laurie on their boat, M/V ‘Big Sky’ as we were leaving Mill Bay and joined us. All of us got into Todd Bay and Fleeta was going to drop her anchor and then we would raft off her. Well she ended up closer to shore than was comfortable for us to raft off her so we dropped our anchor a little ways from her boat and Rich and Taffy on M/V ‘Scottish Mist‘, rafted off Fleeta and Bob and Diane on M/V ‘One More Time‘ rafted off us. Fleeta deployed a stern line from her boat to a tree on the shore to hold her in place so she wouldn’t swing with the current. We were able to have a nice visit with Bob and Diane. The temperature went up and Noreen went swimming. Then I went and J.T. was already in the water as he dove under Ron and Noreen’s boat to scrape the algae and stuff off a screen of a through haul. Bob also joined us in the water so we had a great time. The kayaks were in the water and whoever wanted to use them could . Fleeta and Noreen have 2 each. Paul and Laurie didn’t want to raft so they anchored away from us. It was a wonderful time and the evening was beautiful and everyone got together to drink, visit and watch the satellites.

The next morning Fleeta and Laurie went to Buchart Gardens right after they opened and had a great time and were back by lunch time. The day was heating up. Carolyn went kayaking with Noreen, and I stayed behind to work on the afghan I am making for our grandson Eian. I need to finish it before we leave. It was a beautiful and relaxing day. I had been thinking about going swimming but decided against it. It’s a good thing I didn’t go swimming because Noreen did and didn’t stay in long as it was COLD!!! At least yesterday it was warm!!

Bob and Diane chauffeured all of us traveling together, on their boat to Brentwood Bay. Ron and Dave needed to get a part for the generator as it ended up leaking diesel while it was running. So we had a nice ride up Todd Inlet to Brentwood Bay. When we checked in and walked to the top of the pier and the guys, all but J.T., took a cab to the Marine store while the rest of us stayed behind.

We ended at the Pub and ordered drinks and right after that the guys returned. Unfortunately they couldn’t get the part they were looking for. So they joined us in getting drinks and snacks. After we finished we headed back to our ‘water taxi’ and went back to our boats in Todd Bay.

Mill Bay, Todd Inlet, and Brentwood Bay are on Vancouver Island and behind Sidney. Just in case you are trying to find where we have gone and are on a chart for the South Gulf Islands.

Today we are on our way to Genoa Bay which is part of Cowichan Bay north of Mill Bay. Genoa has a small marina and we were able to make reservations to get us all fit in. Bob, because he has the smallest and fastest boat went ahead and got us dock space and helped us all as we came in. So we were moored behind Bob and Diane and across the dock from us was Fleeta then behind her Paul and Laurie. Taffy and Rich left us while we were in Todd Bay. They are continuing their travels north in Canada. Genoa was a cool place. They had a plastic whale that was painted and secured on the dock which was cool.



The house boats were cool and the art that was hung on the outside of some of them was great. The bathrooms were at the head of the dock and the art outside in there court yard was pretty neat.

Diane went up to take a shower and I followed shortly thereafter. It cost $2 or 1 Canadian Toonie. When I got to the bathroom there was already a lady waiting in line to shower. So we talked a little and there were only two showers and both curtains were closed so we thought both were in use. I knew Diane was in one, but I wondered about the other one. Anyway….. Diane came out and said the water was cold and she couldn’t get any hot. Bummer. Well I needed a shower and have taken cold ones at home so no worries right???? Then we found out there was no one in the other shower and we were waiting for nothing!!!! The woman ahead of me took the shower we thought was in use and I went into the one Diane used thinking I could get hot water some how. NOPE!!!! I put the toonie in and heard it drop but I got hardly any water pressure and never even warm water. It was very cold. So I proceeded to wash my hair and got brain freeze on the top of my head!!!!! Needless to say it was a quick but effective shower. At least I am clean smelling again!!!! Diane had gone and complained to the lady at the marina office and she came up and put a toonie in and it worked and she got hot water and lots of pressure. Apparently for Diane and I the toonie hadn’t clunked to the bottom of the mechanism to activate the shower. Oh well. It was definitely interesting. The gal said you had to listen for it to clunk loud. That didn’t happen for Diane and I. Now the other lady in the next shower did just fine!! What is up with THAT????!! Ha!!! I survived!!!!

Late that afternoon, we all got into Bob and Diane’s’ boat and they taxied us over to Cowichan Bay which was just across the bay from Genoa. Bob had told us there was a restaurant that served really good fish and chips so that is where we are going for dinner. The waters were calm and so was the weather and the sun was out. Once off the boat, we walked up the street to a restaurant called The Rock Café where they served really good fish and chips.

Most of us had the fish and chips along with a beer. It was very good. When we left the restaurant we stopped at a bread store where some of us bought some bread and chocolate chip cookies. Then it was back to the boat and Genoa Bay. We had one of those cookies and they were really good. They would be great to have for breakfast because there was all kinds of healthy stuff in it!!! We sat on the dock and watched the satellites fly by. It was a beautiful clear night.

The marina at Genoa was out of water on our dock but due to get some in the morning so the next morning we waited and watched big and small boats leave as they didn’t want to wait. It was really cool of the dock master because as soon as those boats left, he announced we could use the water to fill our tanks. We all knew water was scarce so we took on some water but didn’t fill our tanks full. We could do that later. Then we departed for Port Browning which is on Pender Island east of Vancouver Island. We had a nice ride and we rafted to Fleeta’s boat and Bob and Diane rafted off us. Paul and Laurie were still with us but they anchored on their own. We all got things secured on the boat and gathered bags for carrying groceries and booze in, got in the dinghy and went ashore. We walked to the grocery store which was about ½ mile and also went to the liquor store. When we returned to the marina we stopped at the Pub and joined the rest of the gang there to have a drink. Ron ordered a large plate of fries with gravy, which a lot of us never had, but it was really good!!!! Even the chef thought it was strange. Why not…you eat mashed potatoes and gravy……

The marina had a pool and a place to rent kayaks and paddle boards.


The marina and grounds are for sale. It is a pretty place but would be a lot to keep up. We carted our bags to the dinghy and on the way I took a picture of this which should be a constant reminder all children under the age of 12 needs to wear one!!!! Kudos to the marina for having this available for the kids.


We made it back to the boat without sinking the dinghy with our load and proceeded to have a good afternoon. Here is our raft of boats.

Tomorrow we are heading back to Garrison Bay in the San Juan Island to hang on the anchor for the night. Noreen has to be back to work on Monday the 12th it is time to head home. We discussed which route to take going home. Did we want to go to Port Townsend and cross the Straits of Juan de Fuca or did we want to go back the way we came up through Deception Pass. The weather is calling for rain and possibly fog so we will have to wait and see how it is in the morning heading out to decide.

The morning proved to be really nice. It did rain a little on us overnight, but there was sun trying to peak through the clouds so we knew it was going to be fine. We said our good-byes to Diane and Bob as they were traveling back to the San Juan Islands to finish their vacation. We had a great time with them!!!

As we got out of Garrison Bay we discovered calm seas, no wind and no fog!!!! Life is good. At that point we decided to head for Oak Harbor, going through Deception Pass. Before we got to Deception Pass we saw whale boats and other boats sitting still in the water where we were headed. We slowed down and began seeing dorsal fins coming right at us so the engines were put in neutral and we just sat there and watched. We were in the middle of a pod of Orcas!!!! As a big male passed by I snapped a picture hoping I would get something and low and behold here is what I got-------- It was really awesome!!!! A baby orca went by but never came out of the water so missed that shot. When the pod passed we engaged the engines again and headed to Deception Pass. It is always exciting when you see whales!!! We would hit the tide about the time it was changing so all was good. Fleeta and crew decided to cross the straits of Juan de Fuca and drop the hook at Port Ludlow. We thought we would stop in Oak Harbor for the night so Noreen called but there was no room at the inn. The weather was looking a little threatening and we thought we made a good decision to be home tonight. We didn’t want to be caught in wind and rain and rough seas in the morning. It took us about 12 or 13 hours but made it in by 8:00pm. The clouds were moving in but we still had light for coming into the dock. We relaxed, had dinner and met knee pad Clark (he got that name because he wears his knee pads all the time as he works on his boat a lot) and he came over for a few drinks. It was nice to see him again. He has cancer and is doing well and spends the winter in Florida with his lady friend and likes to spend summer here at Brownsville marina. We had a wonderful vacation but were glad to be back in Brownsville. The next afternoon Fleeta made it back with crew and the weather actually wasn’t as bad as they had predicted. Most of the thunder storms and rain ended up in the Cascade foothills. Even so…..we were glad we had the day to unwind and clean up and do laundry.

So now was the time for doctor visits and getting some shopping done before wone go home. I had a physical on the 13th and all turned out well. I got my shingles shot but unfortunately I didn’t get my colonoscopy done because they couldn’t get me in before the 10th of September. So that is on my list to get accomplished next summer.

The weather has changed a little and we are getting more clouds and threat of rain. One day it just poured!!! It was good because the jeep got rinsed and everything got long awaited water.

E.J., who is my oldest sons’ son, came over on the Edmonds/Kingston ferry to spend the night on Ron and Noreen’s boat with us. It was very good to see him. Grandpa picked him up at the ferry and brought him back to the boat. Ron and Noreen weren’t home as they had a wedding rehearsal dinner to go to so when the guys got to the boat Dave started working on the heating system again. He was going to have E.J. get in the tight spots where Dave couldn’t so they would be working together. I went to the grocery store and picked up a few items and when I returned to the boat Dave thought I had brought something home to eat for dinner. He and Dave were starving. I didn’t know what Dave wanted to do for dinner so I thought I would find out when I got back to the boat. Well he was tired but we ended up going to the Chinese restaurant. It was fun having E.J. along with us. We had a great dinner and conversation!!! Then it was back to the boat. We watched some TV, waiting for Ron and Noreen to get home. Soon it was bed time and E.J. got to sleep on the fly bridge. The next morning we had to be at my youngest sons house as I was watching their son Jonathan Jr for the weekend. Eian, my eldest sons middle son was coming to stay the weekend as well as E.J. but we had to pick Eian up in Renton so once Jon and Susannah left and Jonathan Jr had been feed we would leave. Dave stayed for a few minutes to hold Jonathan Jr and say hi and headed back to Brownsville to work more on the heating system. It ended up where Jon, Susannah and us left at the same time. They were driving to Pendleton, Oregon to stay a couple nights at a casino then come back to Seattle on Sunday for the Sounders game and stay overnight in Seattle then get home on Monday afternoon.

We picked Eian up and E.J. sat in the back seat with Jonathan and Eian in the front. Eian was on his phone the whole trip so not much conversation went on. We get to the house and Jonathan was a little fussy but once he was fed and changed he played for a while before going down for a nap. The guys went to the park behind Jon and Susannah’s house and played on the equipment bars then came back. E.J. watched some sports on TV; played a couple of soccer Xbox games and that was about it. Eian got a little irritated with Jonathan when he was fussy, but he played a little with him and talked to him but really didn’t want to hold him. Typical 14 year old. Well Sunday came along and Eian unexpectedly had to leave as his mom said he needed to be home on Monday to pick his classes. So being I couldn’t leave since Jonathan Jr was sleeping, Eian’s mom sent friends to pick him up. Then it was just E.J., me and Jonathan Jr. E.J. was a big help to me with Jonathan and helped feed him his bottle and played with him. E.J. had Jonathan laughing so hard it was infectious and we were laughing so hard we were crying!!!! All E.J. did was pretend to sneeze and throw his hands up and Jonathan thought that was hilarious!!!! So we all chilled on the couch for a while then it was dinner time and bed for Jonathan. E.J. and I watched the sounders game on TV which they won, and watched some more TV and went to bed. I slept in Jonathan’s room so I wouldn’t wake E.J. going back and forth from Jon and Susannah’s room to Jonathan’s and back. Actually, Jonathan slept through the night pretty much both nights. Sunday night he did wake up a couple times but went back to sleep and got up at 6:30am. Not bad. I was glad I got to see Eian. Unfortunately grandpa didn’t get a chance to see him, but maybe next year.
Here are a few pictures of E.J. and Jonathan Jr.


Monday afternoon while we were waiting for Jon and Susannah to come home, E.J. got a call from his future step mother to see if we could keep him one more night and send him on the ferry Tuesday afternoon. After checking with Ron and Noreen to see if he could stay, it was a yes. Grandpa and I get to visit some more with E.J. We were expecting Jon and Susannah around 3:00pm but they didn’t get home until 4:00pm. Grandpa got to the house around 3:00pm and got to talk and play with Jonathan Jr. and talk to E.J.. Then when Jon and Susannah finally got home and I filled them in on how Jonathan did over the weekend and said goodbye as we had to head home. Dave said that Ron and him didn’t feel much like cooking and this was a late night for Noreen to get home so we stopped at KFC and picked up enough chicken and sides to feed about 10 people. We knew E.J. would eat a bunch and we like left over chicken so it all worked out. We had a lot of laughs with E.J. and sure did enjoy having him on the boat. He is a great kid. He is going to be a Sophomore!!! Yikes!!!

Tuesday afternoon I took E.J. to the ferry and said goodbye and gave him a very big hug and kiss!!!! We won’t see him again until next year.

Happy Birthday to me--------. It was a quiet and low keyed day. I spent a couple hours at my girlfriend Judy’s house and we had a nice visit. Then when Noreen got home from work we went to Famous Dave’s restaurant and had their all you can eat ribs!!! Yumm! I had a good birthday and it will be a great year!!!

Friday, the 30th we left on the boat to go to Everett to spend Memorial Day weekend there with the Brownsville Yacht Club. We had been having rainy weather but today was beautiful!!! We got to Everett around 5:30pm and joined the others who arrived earlier for appetizers on the party dock. Then we all went back to our boats and chilled then went to bed.

Today, the last day of August was a very relaxing one. I read for most of the day, trying to finish a book I borrowed from Noreen, and Dave and Ron walked to the Marine Store. A little later I took a walk with Bob and Diane and as they were looking at a boat I went ahead and walked to the other side of the marina and had a nice walk. I am looking forward to the Farmers Market tomorrow. At 4:00pm we had margaritas on the party dock then dinner at 7:00pm while watching the Huskies game. We had a projector that projected the game on a white cloth pinned to the side of one of our yacht club boats. The Huskies won as it should be since they played in their new stadium for the first time!!!! It was a beautiful sunny day with a breeze!!!