01/25/2010 15:37:14

If, when I get home this afternoon it's still relatively sunny on the side of the house (it won't be, I'm sure) I've still got a bit of work to do on the boat.

She needs the rest of the cockpit finished (been painting it). 

The trailer needs painting and I really need to find and cut some carpet for the runners on the trailer.  The old stuff is disintegrating and needs replacement next time I drop the boat into the water.

I also have to do the port side, polish and wax.  Then I get to start on the deck.  Yuk.  It collects dirt and there is this weird, strange mildew or something that likes to "grow" on the deck.  I don't know what it is, little black spots that appear.  It cleans off and might just be dirt, but, I'm betting it's not edible... :)

I think I mentioned last time I re-wired the stereo back in, and replaced the car speakers with some small wall mounted speakers.  It sounded good.  The solar panel I have on the boat keeps the battery topped off and seems to work pretty well.  It's only on a temporary mount, and I might do something with that as well this week.

"The Plan"

Looking over "the Plan" - to start cruising is looking good.  Appointments this week at the doctor for a physical for myself - to make sure I'm in as good of shape as I think I am and also tomorrow a financial adviser to help us go over our current savings, and the various retirement stuff we've set up.

I'm going to explain exactly what we want to do and for how long and then go over our finances, including what our home is worth, our Jeeps and other belongings and figure out what our "bottom line" is.

If my last calculations were right, selling my house alone will give me enough money to leave for the next 6 or 7 years.  Six for sure, even with emergency funding and some yearly trips home (flying) from where ever we are.  That doesn't touch our real savings, and retirement money at all.

That puts us saving for two years, subtracting our bills (Oh, like those damned credit cards everyone used to love, and of course, the ever-present student loans my wife and I have incurred over the years).

Fortunately, we will have all of that gone very shortly and the "two years" is to make sure to cover what we use up getting rid of the bills.

I'm hoping that we will be putting around an extra 1000 in the kitty a month now, starting at the beginning of February.  That's "extra money" and an emergency fund!

We chose two years to make sure the money is where we want it to be with NO PROBLEMS.

Reading, Education, Learning and... more reading

I've read a dozen or so books in the last few months about cruising, working on boats, choosing boats, and of course coastal and celestial navigation.  I've not become an expert on anything - but, like everything else in my life, I have a 'working knowledge' now.

The only thing I'm an "Expert" on is radio theory, electronics and physics. I hope those things help me figure out which way to point a boat.

I think at this point we intend to get a used boat, bought outright (after a good survey of course) about a year or eighteen months from now.  At that point we'll have our house fixed up to sell and get it on the market and hope we can sell it within the time frame we want.


The day the house sells is the day we pack up and move.  If we haven't quit our jobs yet, we will give them reasonable notice and perhaps help train folks if requested.  Otherwise, I would say within less than a month even without a boat, we will be headed to the East Coast, most likely Florida somewhere to get acquainted with the climate and learn to breathe air at sea level again.

Remember, we live at about 7000 feet above sea level now.

Once in Florida, if we have not already found a suitable vessel we will search in earnest.  I'll be bringing cash, tools, and a few things from our "former lives" to keep to use to repair, rebuild or fix up anything that needs fixin' up.

At that point we decide how long we need, what needs doing, and chose the stuff that is critical to keep the boat afloat, safe but in sailing condition.  Once we're sure the boat floats, and can sail, we'll be doing some short cruises to get used to the vessel, and the area and work to get ready for a one day passage somewhere.

Later, a two day passage... and so on, until we're comfortable with the boat, our ability to sail and eventually our willingness to finally "join the cruising crowd".

Well, that's the rest of the plan.  I hope I remember it next week....

:)