Aloha "Kainoa" & Other News

So the word Aloha has two meanings, used as both hello and goodbye. In this case it's goodbye because Kainoa now has new owners! The other day I received a phone call from a couple that left Iowa, packed all of their things, and came down here to the keys. They came and looked at the boat and the next night they called and asked if they could move on,,,, THAT NIGHT. This was exactly one week ago and they have been living on Kainoa ever since. We have moved "Thin Line" back to the private mooring and are once again, one boat owners. We wish Eric and Sharon the best with their new adventure and are excited and sad to see Kainoa go. She was a good boat, good home, and the countless hours of hard work, blood, sweat and tears, make her sale bitter sweet. 

I started a new job last week and am excited to be working right here at the City Marina. There are several benefits to working here in the harbor, one of which is the commute ;-) I run the pumpout boat and work Tues, Wed, Thur, I also do maintenance around the marina. Today I was out on the water for over 4 hours running the boat in 20kt winds and had a blast. It's challenging and already with my second week behind me I can tell my boat handling skills have improved substantially. Pulling up along side a boat that is swinging around on a mooring or anchor in gusting wind without hitting it OR the plethora of attachments such as solar panels, dinghies, grills etc, isn't easy, but it sure is a lot of fun! It is also a great way to meet everyone in the harbor and get to know people I wouldn't get to know otherwise. Another recent development is my responsibility to the Boot Key Harbor Cruisers Net. Everyday on VHF channel 68 at 9am we have the cruisers net, this is a great way for the 300+ boats and crew to know what is going on in the area. There are announcements, a buy/sell/trade, comments/questions/needing help section and a little trivia. These nets are controlled by the net controller that keeps things in order and basically hosts the show. I am now the Sunday net controller and am having a blast putting my own spin on the radio. Hosting the net and working here have really plugged us into the community and we are finding ourselves waving to people we absolutely do not know, that call us by name. 

Colby and Peyton are doing quite well, school is going great and the harbor is full of kids. This is by far the most kids we have seen since we began cruising and best of all they are all boat kids. Boat kids in general are almost all great kids, they are polite, smart, full of ingenuity and imagination. Instead of rotting away with their faces pressed against a screen mashing buttons on an Xbox, they play the way kids used to play. They have mangrove forts, pretend to be pirates and from the little ones to the teenagers, they all get along and play together. There is a family in the harbor with a girl Colby's age and two twin boys Peytons age, they live on a boat a rocks throw away from us. I've yet to let the cat out of the bag till now, but Colby has a girlfriend. Shannon and Colby have been dating now for almost 2 months and the entire harbor is ewwing and awing at young love. (and watching them like a hawk!) Colby went on his first official date a couple weeks ago where he took her to Burdines for dinner, Jessica was working that night so it was chaperoned. Colby always goes up to her father Dean and asks his permission first, they think the world of Colby and we love Shannon as well.  They have also done dinner and a movie, most recently to see the new Hunger Games. It's amazing watching my son grow up so fast and right before my eyes, I am so fortunate I get to spend everyday with my children and never miss the most important moments.

Colby took Shannon on a sail date in our friend Steve Halls trinka and though I'm sure it was embarrassing, I had to get the camera out!

We are so blessed to have the life we are living. So many things have gone our way and always just worked out. For the past few years I've ignored fear and just leapt without asking questions and with total faith that everything would work out. If it feels like something I should be doing I don't make any excuses. No excuses, no regrets, and no worries, can't think of a better way to live my life. 

Cowards & the Courageous

Before we moved out of a house and sold everything we lived on a great street just outside of Nashville called Village Way.. We got to know several neighbors and there were so many great families on the street it really did make it hard to leave. There was one house just down the street and inside that little 2 story house was the story of an amazing women. Her and her husband have 2 beautiful children, and they found out there was another on the way. She was in her early 30's and the future looked promising. 2 weeks before her due date the baby was stillborn, delivered on her 7th wedding anniversary. Less than one month after this heart wrenching blow, she was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer, on her 33rd birthday. 

I did some asking around and was able to find out she had a blog. I got to know her story, her family, and her, from the safety of behind a computer screen. There were so many times while walking by, I wanted to just knock on the door and introduce myself, just to meet this wonderful women. I wanted our kids to play with hers, Colby and Peyton knew what it felt like to have a parent fighting cancer. So many times I wanted to go over and bring them food, toys, or just to ask if they needed anything but,,, I never did. I followed her story, read her blog and was astounded by the strength of this women and her faith. But I never knocked on that door, I never had the courage.. We got busy moving out of the house, onto our boat and then like a whirlwind we were in Florida. Several times I thought of her, but seemed to distance myself and quit checking her blog. 

Looking back there was sort of a survivors guilt. Here I was moving on a boat and moving to the Florida Keys to live a dream, and here she was fighting to just see another day with her kids. I had my bout with cancer and she made it seem painfully real again. I don't really know why I quit reading her blog and following her story, maybe it was because I knew how it was going to end. Last night while laying in bed I thought of her and her family, so finally I sent a message to one of our old neighbors, hoping to hear good news. The message came when I got home this afternoon, she died. 

If only she knew how much she touched me, how many times she inspired me with her courage. If only I would have knocked on that door and been able to meet her in person. This women was a total stranger to me, yet through her story and her writing I felt a connection, a connection through the one thing we shared, cancer. 

Why one person lives and another dies I will never know. I do know there is a family learning to live again and there are 2 children without a mother. She had an unwavering faith until the end, she believed whatever happened was meant to be. Even in death she continues to touch the lives of others through the foundation setup in her name. I am ashamed I never took the time to get to know her, and I am saddened at my loss by not following her until the end. 

Tonight I sit here with a heavy heart and a renewed desire to "savor the day". You see, she often talked of savoring the day and it was also the title of her website savoringtheday.com. Once again I am inspired and want to make sure others know about Sara Walker. I also want someone out there to knock on that door, make the phone call, introduce yourself. Don't walk by like I did, it was truly my loss. I am sorry Sara, I am sorry I never had the courage to meet you, but so very thankful I got to know your story. 

"And I want you to see what I see.

I want you to LIVE, and live ABUNDANTLY.

I want us to learn together to SAVOR every extraordinary moment, but spare you the pain it took for me to learn this lesson." 

Sara Walker 

www.savoringtheday.com

Peyton's New Bed

We had searched around trying to find Peyton a bed, well actually memory foam that would fit her unusual size berth. You can't exactly go into a mattress store and pick up one shaped like this, I had found some online that I could cut to fit but nothing around us. Yesterday while walking through Home Depot grabbing a few things we ran across something I never would have expected, foam exactly the width and only 2 inches short of the length! Well Peyton isn't 77 inches long so I didn't think she would notice it was only 75". Best of all it was 24 bucks! So last night Peyton got to finally sleep in her own bed instead of on the couch. Her area is actually the top bunk, the lower has been converted into the "garage". The previous owner Jeff installed large drawers under the top bunk and the lower area storage space. This allows us to store almost all our extra stuff and with a quick few snaps we can secure the cargo with a lee cloth. 

Almost exactly 1 year ago we went on vacation to the Key Lime Sailing Club in Key Largo. During our stay there we made a lot of new friends that we are still in touch with today, and yesterday two of them came down to Marathon to visit. Yesterday evening our friends Richard and Jean Marie stopped by, I picked them up at the dinghy dock and brought them back to the new boat. We had a few drinks, I gave them the nickel tour and then Richard insisted he take us to dinner so we headed up to Lazy Days for a happy hour feast! Now I'm not a big drinker by any means, but going to Lazy Days isn't about drinking anyway, it's about great cheap food! They have some of the most reasonably priced happy hour food in Marathon. Wings the size of full size drum sticks, tuna tataki, calamari, conch fritters and the list goes on. When all was said and done the final bill for all 6 of us INCLUDING drinks was 39 bucks! (6.50 per person for the bean counters out there ;-) All stuffed and happy we said our goodbyes and they left to head back to Key Largo, they were going back home in the morning. Peyton couldn't wait to get home to try out her new bed. 

My nav station (desk)

I can actually say we love this boat, we love being on her and when we aren't at home we get excited when we return. Just motoring up to the boat brings a smile to all our faces. I've got some news coming over the next few days and will be starting a new job, more on that later.. 

S/V Thin Line

Here Comes the Sun!

It may sound a little hippy'ish but I find it awesome that every single bit of power I get comes from the warm sun and the breeze blowing my wind generator and cooling the boat. My kids don't waste water, power or food and yet they aren't lacking in any of those. In my opinion they are getting more of an education on life by experiencing where things come from. When we get lobster or fish they are in the water hunting with me, they see the prey, they know where dinner came from and they respect it. My children don't think hamburger comes from the store, they know an animal died for that meal and therefore out of respect, you don't waste. In addition to living our lives, we are treading lightly on this planet, and Jessica and I are raising good stewards of our future. 

So life is well on "Thin Line" we are pretty much moved in and are just organizing and finding the best and most efficient place to store everything. We did have a small snag and found quickly our batteries were pretty much toast. Jeff had mentioned they might be getting close to the end of their lives, but we were surprised to find they were too far gone. The plates had been completely exposed and they wouldn't hold a charge. In a last ditch effort I attempted to fill them with distilled water and see if they would hold, even in a largely reduced capacity. But as soon as the power was cut off they dropped off right away and the meter looked like a damn countdown as it ticked down to nothing. 

So it was time to shop batteries and while I had considered Trojan T105's I found with my employee discount at West Marine their 6 volt Deka brand batteries presented the best value. I made a trip to West and picked up the 4 they had on the shelf. Next week I'll be ordering the additional 4 to complete our new bank consisting of 860 amp hours. Not exactly what I had intended on spending money on, but hey it had to be done and now I know I am good for several years. 

First step was to remove the 8 batteries stored under the bench all of which weigh just enough to make you grunt and make your back cringe. Then I had to get the new ones I had loaded into the dinghy on the boat, Colby was a lot of help. 

The new installation took just a few minutes and I did decide to run the generator for a couple hours just to give them some juice since it was the end of the day and they didn't get a chance to charge. I didn't want them to bear the house load at half charge. Now that they are charged the generator can go back into storage (yay). 

(Half of the new bank, perfect fit, 4 more to go)

This morning I also got to take a couple pictures of the boat, we are still getting things put away and it's a little unorganized but I promised pictures so here they are. 

Peyton doing her schoolwork

A normal shaped bed?!!!!

Dresser

Today we are headed to the airshow in Marathon, were they are taking kids up for a free flight. More photos of that later. 

SV Thin Line

Settling In

Well we have had a busy weekend that included moving stuff on the new boat, organizing storage, me playing music at Turtle Kraal in Key West and having an out of town guest. Oh yeah and it was my 15th wedding anniversary! Plenty of pictures will be taken shortly it's just been a blur this weekend and we still have to do a bunch of swapping from one boat to another. 

Our friend Aaron from Nashville was in Key West for the annual "Meeting of the Minds" music festival and invited me to come play a couple songs at Turtle Kraal. So Saturday afternoon we made a trip down to Key West and got to hear him play. I got up and sang a few songs, it felt good to play again and even got to play the new song I wrote with Steve Hall. Aaron was able to find time AND a ride in between gigs to come up to Marathon and hang out on Monday. We relaxed and enjoyed a windy yet beautiful day here in Boot Key, spending most of the day doing nothing but catching up. A cold front was moving in and the winds had been around 25kts all day, however that evening it was supposed to pick up to near gale force. 

Around 5:30 we made our way up to the tiki hut and were joined by several of our closest friends, and even some new ones for our anniversary party. We grilled burgers, dogs, yellowtail, lobster along with plenty of drink and music. Aaron broke out the guitar and even though he had been playing all week, wow'd the crowd with his song "It All Rums Together" (available on Itunes btw). I played a couple and the guitar was passed around for a few songs before the decline in the weather forced us to head to the boat to get Aaron settled in for the night.  

It was a last minute and not thought out that well, but we figured Aaron could just sleep on Kainoa and enjoy the peace and quiet. We picked a hell of a night for Aaron's first time sleeping on a sailboat, winds had us rocking and rolling all night long. I thought for sure the next morning I'd see some bloodshot eyes, but he slept right through the entire night. 

There have been a few other developments that I will fill you all in on shortly and I'll get the camera out tomorrow and get a few shots if it's not raining and blowing like it has been. We are loving our new boat and life here on "Thin Line" 

;-)

Good News, Bad News ;-(

BAD NEWS

Well I always like to hear the bad news first, so I will deliver that right away.. We are no longer heading to the Bahamas this year ;-(  The Bahamas isn't going anywhere and sometimes in life you just have to live with the hand you are dealt. The kids and Jess are taking the news well and I am ok with the decision. There are quite a few changes that are happening in our lives right now and this is the "bad" news. 

Good News

When I was talking about playing the hand we were dealt, what I failed to mention is I was bluffing and we got dealt a Royal Flush! The good news is actually why we are not doing the Bahamas this year, and not only are we ok with that, we are elated with the reason for that decision. 

Drum Roll............................................................

We present our new boat, "Thin Line" 

"Thin Line" is a 1979 CSY 37' Plan B. We have admired this boat since moving to Boot Key Harbor and when we found out it was for sale, we couldn't miss the opportunity to have the privilege of owning her. Our friends Jeff and Misty have meticulously cared for and improved this boat since they bought it in 2004 as the second owners. The CSY is a very solid boat and a proven world cruiser, capable of going anywhere in the world our hearts desire. She is every bit a bluewater boat at heart. 

I've said it before and I'll say it again.. Keeping your eyes, ears, heart, and your options open, along with never being afraid to pull the trigger when something is in your sights, is key to success in life. I thought there was no way, but I asked and we found a way. Thank you Jeff & Misty you know she is getting a great home and will be loved. 

Today we are doing a little cleaning, a little organizing and then moving a little at a time to "Thin Line". "Kainoa" will be listed for sale as soon as we transfer our things, take some photos and list her. Those of you that follow the blog know the care and work I have put into her over the past year, now is your chance to "Liquidate & Navigate"! Bring your things to the dock, load them up and sail away. We love "Kainoa" but this was a once in a blue moon kind of boat we found. 

We will have more info and I'm sure lots of pictures and details soon. Until then take a deep breath and if something comes your way, don't hesitate, leap and have faith. 

HUGE News Coming Soon!

New News

We have huge news coming sometime this weekend, not sure when exactly but before Monday. I don't want to give it away, but lets just say it's a huge change of plans! This family doesn't miss a chance when it comes our way, we take a deep breath, a leap of faith, and find a way to make things happen.. They did.........