Listening to "Chocolate Jesus" by Beth Hart & Joe Bonamassa
"Let's go to Ocracoke!" is a phrase that has escaped my lips on more than one occasion, yet we never seemed to go. The weather doesn't cooperate, the tides are off, we don't get it together...you get the gist. However, after being apart for a month, Drake and I wanted to spend a couple of days away. Also, there was the ever present need to go on shakedown sails and *voilá* a trip is born.
Before we started, however, there were a couple of things that needed attention, in particular the stern light. It had stopped working ages ago and had consistently been swept aside under the guise of "we have much more important things to deal with" excuses. However, we are now staring dead on at everything we have put on the back burner. With two months (and counting!?!) before we leave, everything must be attended to immediately. Since Drake was grinding fiberglass for the new battery supports, I was elected to tackle the job.
I believe I may have mentioned my extreme suspicion when dealing with things that might kill me, such as electricity. Clinging precariously to the stern while grounded on various metal railings and supports, I ruffle my feathers at the merest hint of electrocution. After Drake assured me that my untimely death would most likely happen in another way entirely, and once my pointed silence complete with squinty eyes had been delivered, I got down to business.
Taking the outer casing off I was pleasantly surprised to see that the bolt used to tighten down one of the wires attached to the light had completely come out and was rattling around in the bottom of the cover. Crossing my fingers that this simple fix could be the answer to the nonworking light I grabbed my screwdriver and started to screw the bolt into the rather awkwardly placed hole.
This is the point where I should have thought things through...instead I fumbled with this teeny teeny screw while perched on the railing halfway over the water. Just as I began to think I should grab Drake for a second set of hands, I watched the bolt slip from my fingers and instantly disappear into the water.
"Oh Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuudge!!!"
But like my favourite Christmas movie, I did not say fudge. My expletive of choice rang out across the water, startling a flock of seagulls and, I'm sure, endearing me even more to our lovely Canadian neighbors who most likely think I am embracing the swearing part of sailor more than the actual sailing.
I suppose it may be true that fortune favours fools, or maybe we simply have an amazing hardware store, but either way I was able to quickly replace the metric bolt that had taken a header into the water with the help of Paul. I also purchased three extra bolts, just in case, AND taped a plastic bowl under the stern light as I replaced the fittings.
Now we sit in an anchorage in West Bay where we just woke up to the most beautiful and calm morning that I have had the pleasure to see. It's just shy of 70˚ and I think we might stay here for a couple of days before heading over to Ocracoke. I can't wait…
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| Just anchored in West Bay |
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| We sat in the cockpit and watched the beautiful sunset |
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| The calm and misty morning |
Heh. Don't feel bad. I was cleaning out the screen of a sea strainer one time...stuck the hose in the thing and squeezed the handle. There was so much water pressure (shore fed) it shot the strainer right out of my hand and into the water.
ReplyDeleteHeh! You know, I would probably have done this as well. I'll keep that in mind the next time I'm cleaning things out and perhaps this will be one situation I can avoid!
DeleteIt's good to here from you guys again. It must be incredibly exciting taking each step, completing yet another project in route to such a grand voyage! Here's a special "thank you" from those of us surrounded by ice and snow here in the north!
ReplyDeleteIt's very exciting to see so many things being crossed off the list. We've been living at anchor off of Ocracoke for about a week now and are using this time to work on the boat (in a new location!) and test out various systems that cannot be tested while docked in the marina. I'm happy to say that the Rocna anchor has been a champ…even in wind over 40NM.
DeleteThanks so much for watching, and keep warm in that snowy weather!
We've all done that, and will continue to drop various boat parts in the drink. Marine hardware manufacturers design parts in such a way as to make them hard to hold on to. :)
ReplyDeleteI used to work for Dutchman, the company that manufactures and sells their wonderful sail flaking system. Whenever a customer would call to order a part that fell overboard, I always responded with "The first Dutchman system had parts that would float. We had to rework the plastic formula to make them sink."
That's hilarious. Perhaps I need to install a gigantic, floating sieve around the boat when I work. *grin* It's not the first time I've dropped something, and I'm sure it won't be the last.
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