We are on the boat in Santa Rosalia. We didn’t have much traffic as we thought we would for after Easter vacationers. It was nice!! A lot of cars heading north though!
Today was a good day as we accomplished quite a bit on the boat. I cleaned the leather seats below, dusted, cleaned and polished the stainless steel on the stern of the boat and washed the shower curtain. The shower curtain actually turned out not to be as dirty as I thought it was. That was a plus!!!! Dave washed off the bird doo on the deck and took our poor worn and torn tarp off. We will look for another one tonight when we go to town for dinner. The Santa Rosalia famous hot dogs are calling us!!!! They are sooooo good but pack a whollop for cholesterol. I only have one. Dave eats 2. The hot dog is wrapped with bacon and fried and then they put mustard, ketchup, onions, cheese, and tomatoes on it. YUMMMMM!!!!
While I was working on the stainless steel, Dave went to the immigration office just to see how things were progressing and when he returned he had our permanent resident cards!!!!! Yahooooo!!!!! We will never have to do this again!!!!! Praise the Lord!!! Next is the boat!!!
Speaking of that, we have heard from Robert and Kristi and they will be here to see the boat around the 25th of this month. We are planning on coming down about a week before they get here to spiff up the boat and make sure the stainless is shiny and the boat is clean. It will be nice to meet these people as we’ve been conversing with them for months now. They too have had their share of financial problems so hopefully that is coming to an end not only for them but us too!!!! The Lord has a plan and it is in place. Whatever transpires will be a good thing no matter what!!
There are about 8 or 9 sailboats in the marina now. They are heading north in a few days for San Carlos (which is on the mainland, across the sea from where we are). They will haul the boat out of the water and put it on the hard for the summer months. We were able to see a couple that had cruised on their boat with us and they are crewing on another couples boat. They, like us, are going to sell their boat and move on land. Eventually the old timers choose land as it does get harder to maneuver around on a boat. There are plenty of new cruisers out there to take our place. The only bad thing is they don’t know a lot about cruising, their boats or navigation. THAT is scary!!!! We were talking to our cruising friends today and they said the cruising isn’t like it used to be. It’s fun for a while and then it is time to get out!! The other thing is the new cruisers tend to THINK they know it ALL and don’t want to listen to us old folks!!! O.K. FINE!!!!
Alberto, who washes our boat, asked if he could work on the stainless steel. Another guy named Edgar, who also works at the marina, said he and Alberto could do it together. I say YES!!!! It will be easy for them as one will do one side while the other does the other side. I think it is awesome. Just doing the aft stainless is hard on my back. They are much younger!!! We were able to get a tarp for the boat and we put it on the day before leaving for Bahia. The boat looks nice but we will have to spiff it up the next time we come down.
Shortly after getting back to Bahia we were hit with a freak wind storm. We had sand everywhere. So guess what I got to do? I had to vacuum the blinds and all around the windows and sills, cupboard tops, etc. Then wipe down the counters and vacuum the floor. It is like a spring cleaning until the next big wind comes. It was unusual because it changed direction. First it would be out of the north, then south, then west, and east. It was coming every which way!!! A couple times we couldn’t see our neighbor’s house on either side of us due to the sand blowing. Winds got up to 60+. The screens in the windows rattled along with the windows. We tried putting a wood clothes pin between the window and frame but with the vibration it didn’t stay. We heard that thin cardboard works pretty well so we’ll have to try that. We were lucky though, we didn’t have to sleep in the trailer as it calmed down by bed time. A couple gusts happened during the night but nothing like we experienced during the day. We thought the roof was going to blow off. I’m NOT KIDDING!!!! Also we were concerned with the skylights. Well we made it through and no damage. Dave went on the roof and checked the T.V. antenna and the skylights the next day and all was good. The only thing that needs to be done is to put some cold tar around one of the skylights. Since he hates heights, he will ask our gate guard if he would go up on the roof and fix it for us. He is always willing to help and earn extra money. The wind was still blowing enough not to be safe on a ladder so we will have to wait and do that project later.
I was going to wash my windows, but settled for just the solar panels. The windows will have to wait.
We were having trouble getting our internet working and tried readjusting our antenna and we still couldn’t get a strong signal. Larry, our landlord had an old antenna that he got to work so we got that one and tried it and it is wonderful with a strong signal. Apparently where we are in Bahia the signal isn’t strong because they change the position of the one in the states. So the new antennas don’t work. Dave finally was able to get a hold of a guy that has an old antenna on his roof in Bufedora, Ensenada and it is free as long as the person that wants it takes it down. Larry has tried several times to connect with the guy but either the guy was not home or Larry wasn’t home. We got lucky and so we made the trip to get it off his roof. The drive up was very windy and I was concerned we wouldn’t be able to get the antenna due to the wind, but the next day was wonderful. We stopped at Walmart and got a few things and then Costco for a couple of things then off to Bufedora. There is a very large population on ex-pats there who have large homes overlooking the Pacific and Ensenada. Wouldn’t want to live there as it is always windy!! And it isn’t really warm either. Anyway----we have the antenna.
Just the other day Dave switched out the antenna Larry let us borrow for the one we got in Ensenada. Things weren’t going so well. It was looking like it wasn’t going to work and we thought it was a dud but as it turned out, Larry came over (since he is the Bahia cable guy) and toyed with it and it works!!! We now have a stronger signal than ever before so we are good to go and internet is up and running!!! Larry has his old antenna back and our new antenna sits in the garage. Because Star Band internet (which is what most people have down here) is in the San Diego area, the main antenna that services the San Diego, Los Angeles area doesn’t point to where we can pick it up down here, so reception is weak for us. A lot of the people are experiencing problems. I’m just glad we have ours up and running again.
We heard from Robert about coming down to look at the boat. He and a friend are driving down in Roberts truck and will be at the boat on the 26th. Robert’s wife, Kristi is flying to Loreto that day so she won’t be coming. Both Robert and his wife have seen pictures of the inside of the boat and Robert saw the outside at the marina but he wants to see the inside in person. So mid afternoon on Friday he and his friend will stopping at the marina in Santa Rosalia. FINALLY!!! If all goes well we will have to make some more trips down so we can take Kristi and Robert on a sea trial and get them familiar with the boat. But I am getting the cart before the horse. We will see what happens. In the meantime the threads that hold the zippers on the canvas are rotting and coming loose. We have new zippers coming down which we hope to get by next month. We may have to take all the screens from the cockpit off the boat and take them; the zippers and thread to La Paz to get them sewn, but we will deal with that later. Robert knew about what shape the zippers were in so there won’t be any surprises.
We are back on the boat, 24th and today the 25th are faced with the chore of cleaning the cockpit, get the water spots off the stainless steel around the main hatch and polish it afterwards. My job was easy compared to Dave’s. He has been working on the forward head all day. It is still losing pressure. He found one of the pieces, that work the flusher pedal, broken and he took the head apart again and discovered that the last time he put it together he did it incorrectly for the seals. So with the new part in and doing all the other stuff we hope it works. All that is left is to wash the windshield and straighten up the guest state room. I have been leaving the cover on the windshield because it too needs sewing and I hate to take it off but I’m hoping if I am really careful taking it off tomorrow, I will be able to clean it and the windshield and replace it again. Cross your fingers it works!!!
Dave finished working on the forward head but it still is losing pressure. It has Dave baffled. We can’t do anything more now, but it will need to be resolved before we sell the boat. He is putting all his tools and parts away in the guest stateroom and then I will make the bed. Right now I have to walk to town and visit the ATM, the pharmacy and tienda (store).
On our way down to Santa Rosalia we had to stop in Guerrero Negro to have Dave see the dentist. The gum to his front tooth is sore which indicated an infection. Luckily we had the antibiotic, Amoxicillin to start him on. Dr. says he is going to need a root canal and along with taking the Amoxicillin he will need to get a pain killer. We are hoping to get an appointment so we can stop on our way home from Santa Rosalia and get it done. There is always something to add to the adventure right?????!!!! Well I am off to town.
I made it to the ATM, pharmacy for Dave’s pain pills and mine and the only thing I couldn’t do was shop at the store as they were closed and wouldn’t open again until 5:00pm. It was after 4:00pm so I decided to either try tomorrow before 2:00pm or stop after we have dinner tomorrow night. My back was really hurting but I took my pain pill and the combination of walking and the medicine made it feel better.
We took the sheet lines off the headsail this morning and have been soaking and rinsing them all afternoon. I rinsed them well and now all that is needed is to soak them overnight with a little fabric softener. I use a bounce dryer sheet. It makes them softer and more pliable and they smell good too. Ha!! Tomorrow morning we will rinse them and then tie them to the headsail and let them dry. We have been talking about doing that for a long time. It’s amazing what you do when you know there are people coming to look at the boat. I guess it gives an incentive!!
The boat looks nice and when the windshield is cleaned it will almost look new!!!!! Ha!!! Actually we get nice comments on our boat all the time.
Well I am sitting here writing this with the heating pad on my back. Yeesh!!!! Hopefully it will feel much better tomorrow. Too much up and down action with the plunger to clean the sheet lines in the bucket!!!!
We paid our guys Alberto and Edgar for doing the stainless. It looks really nice.
My back is doing better today so I am going to wash the inside and outside of the windshield and the cover too. It cleaned up nicely. The cover and outer window was filthy and looks so much better now. There are water spots but the next time we come down I will use spot remover on it. The cover made the taking off the windshield just fine and now is back in place. I will need to bring my sewing machine down next time to sew the one of the edges on the cover. We were able to relax in the cockpit and enjoy a clean boat.
As we were waiting for Robert to show up, I did laundry. Unfortunately the marina hasn’t fixed the problem of washers being fixed so we usually have to guess which on is working. A cruiser had been doing his laundry that morning so I got the scoop from him of which washer and dryer worked. So when he was finished I took my turn in the laundry room. It took a long time for the clothes to wash as water just trickled in the tub, but after about an hour or so they were ready for the dryer. I transferred the clothes to the dryer and started it. Then I went back to the boat to return in about 20 minutes. I expected the clothes to be dry or almost dry and when I opened the door and felt the clothes they were still wet!!!! I didn’t feel any heat from the dryer and said------uh oh!!! We told Edgar and he discovered they were out of propane. So I took the clothes to the boat and hung them on the life and the clean sheet lines on the starboard side of the boat in true cruising style!!!! Right after that Robert showed up. Wouldn’t ya know it. We told him what happened and we all had a good laugh. So we went through the boat with Robert telling where everything was like batteries, etc. We ran the engine which sounded amazingly good. He likes what he sees and mentioned about having it hauled out in Escondido to get a survey done. He would have to pay for that. But the thing is--until he buys the boat there won’t be any of that going on. He has to wait for things to sell before he can buy the boat so it is a waiting game. He wants Kristi, his wife to see it but they won’t be able to come back to the boat until her mother leaves. They will let us know when they can be back.
We were able to schedule an appointment for Dave to get his root canal done tomorrow, on our way home to Bahia tomorrow.
Dave got the root canal done and all is well. Thank goodness we were able to get it done so quickly. We have to make one more trip to Guerrero Negro for a checkup but that is all. It is a 2-½ hour drive from Bahia to Gro. Negro. It’s 5 to Santa Rosalia. So not a bad trip and is done in one day!!
We are back in the bay again. I have been working on a mobile for our grandson David who is 4. He loves jelly fish so I decided I would make a mobile out of the bottoms of plastic tonic water bottles. They have five bubbles to help the bottle stand up so I cut just the bottom off the bottle, glued some clear glass beads (the ones you can buy for decorating glass vases and other things for show) in the indentations. Then I glued some fabric ribbon around the edge then gathered ribbon for the tentacles. Anyway----I think it turned out great and I’m sure David will love it. The breeze will allow the tentacles to sway which is cool. Here is a picture!! I’m thinking that might be a great project for the show next year. While we are in the states for the summer, I want to get some cellophane for the tentacles. That should be cool and very inexpensive. I am making a turtle out of rock and shells for my friend Noreen to give to her when we get to Washington. I promised I would make her one. I am also working on the dragon/wizard counted cross stitch and the afghan for Eian. So I am always busy doing projects. I still find time to read as well.
