Run For The Border

On The Road Again

2012-05-02T20:57:00.001-07:00

The title is literal. I skipped a bunch and will try and fill it in later but for now we are in Ixtapa. We surfed Tenacious into the marina on six foot breakers! I thought it was fun but the rest of the crew holds different opinions. After over a month of sailing Susan is ready for a break from nausea and a steady diet of Dramamine so I rented a car and tomorrow we will make the drive to Huatulco where she will wait with the kids while my buddy Steve and I sail Tenacious the rest of the way down.

Lots has happened over the last month so I'll try and get caught up on my writing so everybody is informed.

Wish me luck! It has been over four months since I've been at the wheel of something that will do over seven knots!

OK Mom

2012-05-02T20:43:00.001-07:00

I'm 14 again and catching hell from my Mother,

"Why aren't you posting anything on your blog?! It's been over a month!"

"I know Mom, I've just been busy."

"Busy? ...You're on the beach."

Me, sulking "Well... it's hard to get good internet access... and nobody except you reads it anyways"

"Oh Danny, that's not true. Lots of people read your blog!"

So I checked my stats and she's right (Yes Mom, I said it. You were right). There are over three thousand hits right now. So if I subtract the amount of hits I would conservatively guess that my Mother is responsible for that leaves at least a couple dozen other readers!

So for my exclusive group of followers here is a rundown of the last month.

After months of prep Susan finally got tired of sitting in the marina and frustrated enough with our lack of progress that she agreed to start our way south. I had learned from our trip to Yelapa, so I chose the weather window with care knowing that if I freaked her out again I would have a lonely sail to Huatulco. Our trip around the notorious waters of Cabo Corrientes went great, flat calm and not even enough wind to blow out a match. So we motored, no sails, which was fine with me as long as Susan and the kids were having fun and I could keep the anxiety level down.

We pulled into the normally quiescent little one street town of Punta Ipala to find it overrun with revelers for the week of Semana Santa.

Oh wait, I need to back up.

On the day we left La Cruz Morgon was stung by a bee. He got about a half dollar size welt on his forearm which I considered normal and didn't really give it anymore thought. By the time we pulled into Ipala his entire forearm and hand were numb and had swelled to about twice their normal size. His left side looked the true life form of Popeye. I tried really hard not to show my concern but we were a twelve hour sail from a Doctor so I pretty much always had one eye on Morgon and one eye on the 911 evac button on our spot gps. It took about five days for the swelling to diminish and he returned to normal except for a drastically increased wariness around bees. The odd thing is that they really seem to be attracted to him... along with stinging jelly fish and aggressive little fish that bite. Good thing he's tough. Once in Manzanillo we tracked down a pharmacy to try and get him an epi pen but they aren't available in Mexico so we had to settle for a bottle of epinephrine and a needle. All for about seven dollars over the counter. How's that compare for drug cost up north! M

orgon saw that inch and a half long needle and used the little spanish he has to try and convince the pharmacist to find a smaller one but to no avail.

On our way to Manzanillo we stopped at Bahia Chamela and Bahia de Navidad but our favorite and still is thus far was Bahia de Tenacatita. Tenacatita is a great anchorage with a lagoon to explore, fantastic snorkeling and the quaint little village of La Manzanilla on the southwest side of the bay. It was also the spot where we all had our first up close dolphin experience. I had come up on deck just as dusk was setting in and heard the "FHOOSH" of a dolphin exhaling right off of our starboard side. I called Susan and the kids up and for almost an hour we watched them feed on little fish all around the boat. Danny and Alora would hang over the bowsprit and the dolphins would come up just a couple of feet below them!

Morgon and I had run the three miles into La Manzanilla from the anchorage to pick up supplies but Susan, Danny and Alora hadn't gotten to see the town. Two days before we were going to head out I checked the weather and saw we were in for a rough afternoon but the next day would be even worse so we decided to pack into the dinghy and head in to explore.

With two people in a 9 foot 10-hp dinghy you can get up and go! But when you pack in three more people, two dogs and two backpacks full of all of the stuff you haul around when you have a family she sits low in the water and trudges along at a snails pace. On top of all the added weight I had gotten some dirty fuel so about every two minutes the outboard would sputter and choke threatening to die out completely on me before coming back to life. Nevertheless the water that morning was fairly calm and I am reasonably certain we arrived three miles away in La Manzanilla the same day that we had left.

No you can't keep him!

And it was an incredible day! We explored the lagoon on the east end of town spotting monstrous dinosaur-like crocodiles, some almost five feet wide and twenty feet long! We walked the beach sampling the vendors fresh pineapple and mango, giant coconut honeyed treats, grilled shrimp and live raw shellfish. Eaten just after they’re shucked they are still moving when you hit them with some lime!

We took in the clowns and roving mariachi bands; the best of which was a boy of about six or seven belting out classic mariachi tunes. The crowd around him would get so heavy you almost had to stand on a chair to see the little guy!

The whole time we are out it is nagging at me that the wind is picking up and I know the seas are getting bigger. But I keep pushing those thoughts away so that I can enjoy this great experience with my family. And it was a great experience! But the day was coming to an end and we were all exhausted so we hauled ourselves back down the beach to our little dinghy and pushed off into the bay.

We hadn’t gotten two minutes from shore when I started to wonder whether I should have given more consideration to the warning bells that had been going off in my head. Ten minutes into the crossing the waves started crashing over the top of the dinghy, at first only occasionally, every twelfth or fourteenth wave; but that soon became every second or third and we were soaked! I didn’t know if we were gaining ground or destined to fight it out in the middle of the bay, not gaining or losing, just hovering until I ran out of fuel. It wouldn’t have been so bad but every time that @&#$* outboard would sputter and choke the bow would dip down allowing the next wave to catch us full force causing the dinghy to slow even more which in turn would bring water over the stern! And the outboard was getting worse. It would cough and sputter every thirty or forty seconds now and every time I was sure that this was it, it would die for good and we would be pathetically trying to push our way through the wind and waves with paddles.

Susan and Alora were great sports! Unafraid, giggling and laughing, trying to shield themselves from the next wall of water. I laughed along with them to hide my concern, trying to quietly urge Danny to BAIL FASTER!! He was already bailing so fast he was a blur! The dogs looked miserable, sitting in four inches of water they held equal looks of doom, giving me condemning glances that told me they knew it was my fault.

A little over halfway into the bay we crossed past the stern of a big Mexican navy ship. Through the water streaming off my glasses I could see the crew all standing on deck watching us all crawl by, wind on our bow, still getting swamped with waves and bailing furiously. I felt like a fool but looked up and waved non shalantly, as if to say “ Oh yeah, this is no big deal, we Canucks do this all the time”. When I looked back a minute later I was crazy with relief to see that the enormous ship had pulled anchor and was following us across the bay.

This ridiculous ordeal went on for what must have been hours until five minutes from Tenacious we crossed into the sheltered side and the seas and winds died down. Soon we were standing on deck, wringing out our clothes, our groceries, and our dogs.

I never did let on to Susan how worried I was. I suppose she’ll read this post and know. I hope that she remembers that God (and the Mexican Navy) looks out for fools, and still be glad she married one.

Hey buddy can you spare a prop?

2012-03-22T08:02:00.000-07:00

Susan has been bravely working to breakthrough her seasickness and fear, and been doing great! So about a week and a half ago we headed out of La Cruz to Punta de Mita to anchor for the night before embarking on to Las Tres Marietas (the three little Marias), an island chain renown for incredible sea life and snorkeling.

Does it get any prettier!

Morgons first kill

Looked ugly but tasted awesome!

We were motoring against the wind on the way back. When we were about an hour out of Punta de Mita we heard a big BANG and the boat started to shake violently. Morgon was at the helm and I hollered for him to back into neutral and rushed down below to pull the sole up and see if we were taking on water. There was none that I could see so I went back up and put her back into gear. The shaking started again. The only thing left was to go over the side to see if I could find the problem. It wasn’t hard to spot. One of the propeller blades had sheared right off at the hub. The good news was that the hull looked untouched.

After that point we were sailors! Motor sailing or straight motoring was no longer an option. We tacked four times to get back into Punta de Mita and sailed beautifully into anchorage like we had done it a thousand times. It had gone well enough that Susan and the kids were comfortable going all the way back to La Cruz under sail the next day where I could start my search for another prop.

Under sail after we lost the prop

Rooftop restaurant in Punta De Mita

View as we sailed into Punta De Mita anchorage.

I have been getting a real education on propellers the last week. You don’t just grab the one nearest you, toss it on the boat and head out. Propeller sizing is one third science, one third art and one third alchemy. I found that I had been way over propped, which meant that my little perkins diesel couldn’t get up to its running rpm's. Kind of like driving up a steep hill in sixth gear.

After a week of searching, charming and begging (there are boats everywhere in Mexico but no props) I had resigned myself to sitting at the dock for a few weeks while one shipped in from the states when one of the cruisers on my dock coughed up his spare. It is beautiful! A campbell sailer 15X9 cupped prop. This is the one I would order new if I had time and money. But when I put it on it wouldn’t slide up the taper enough to cotter pin the nut on! After going over the measurements with Norm from West by North up in B.C. (thank you Skype!) he told me to just cut about a quarter inch off of the prop base with a hacksaw. I was pretty sure that with my cheap little saw, hacking away dockside would make a mess of this shiny new prop. Peter at the La Cruz shipyard was too busy to get to me for a week so told me to help myself to his shop so I could get it done (I was a little stunned, do you get this kind of hospitality from your shipyard mechanic back home?). So now the propeller is back on and we are ready to head out the first calm day we get!

Look at the size difference! Way less drag with the new prop!

Working under snorkle power. Glad I quit smoking!

Interesting Mexico Danger Facts

2012-03-10T07:38:00.000-08:00

I came across this link and thought I would share it. After reading this I looked up the murder rate for Tacoma WA, the neighboring city to Port Orchard, our home town. There were 21 in a city of just over 200,000. Approximately eight million Americans are in Mexico every year (one million live here full time). That means Tacoma is about EIGHT TIMES more dangerous than Mexico!
http://travel.booklocker.com/2011/05/18/travel-safety-in-perspective-usa-vs-mexico/

THE BUCKET, GIVE ME THE BUCKET!!

2012-03-09T07:15:00.004-08:00

On the way to Yelapa

On Tuesday, February 28th after almost two months of scrubbing tinkering and pulling wrenches we pulled out of Puerto Vallarta and set course for Yelapa, a little anchorage about four hours away. Almost everything went off without a hitch. Morgon took the helm just out of PV and had it for the entire trip, the weather was great, the seas a little rough. We had wind on the bow so motored for the trip and the little Perkins ran great, no overheating or blowing black smoke.

So why do I say "almost" everything went off without a hitch? Susan got seasick. Not just a little seasick but heaving pina colada (first mistake = pina colada) over the rail, body shivering, fighting shock seasick. I've done some research on seasickness as I knew that this could be a problem for her, and what I found is that 20% of the population are immune to it. This is somehow linked to the 20% of the population that are real assholes. I am immune to seasickness. So for those budding cruising couples out there let me offer some advice. If you find yourself the lucky asshole that is immune to seasickness an attempt at sympathy is what is called for when your spouse has her head hanging over the rail blowing chunks. Do not roll your eyes and sarcastically spout off "Awww Jesus, so we're moving up and down a little. Big deal, suck it up" or tell your son to "Quick! Drop a lure over the side, this is really gonna bring the fish!". These types of responses will only have you headed straight for the boat broker once you tie up.

So once we had dropped anchor in probably the rolliest anchorage I had ever seen (it was calmer on the open seas) we helped Susan into the dingy and then ashore. With her feet on dry land she turned to me and for the first time in three hours said something other than " THE BUCKET, GIVE ME THE BUCKET!!".

It was "I hope you like it here, because I'm not getting back on that f#&*ing boat".

I at least knew enough to curb my mouth, just respond "okay honey" and go rent a room.

The good news is that while I didn't have the foresight to find an anchorage that was calm instead of like being in a washing machine I was able to find one that there was only two ways out of. One was by boat, the other a month long trip on the back of a mule. I think she really considered the mule.

So after two days in Yelapa we started planning our escape. No drinking, not the day before or the day of the sail. Eat a light breakfast, drink lots of water and above all, take Dramamine an hour before we head out.

It worked great. We had a three hour uneventful beautiful sail to La Cruz. Even spotted a couple of whales. Besides the bucket episode the last week and a half has been great. Yelapa, while a terrible rough anchorage, is an incredibly breathtaking place. We trekked through the jungle to waterfalls, handfed vultures (sounds creepy but it was pretty cool) and just took in the beauty of the place for three relaxing days.

La Cruz is just northwest of PV. We headed here because it was a shorter sail than around Cabo Corrientes and would be easier for Susan. The marina here is only about four years old and wonderful. Its like living in a country club. The showers are shiny, new and have an endless supply of hot water. Security is great and the daily fish market is incredible!

Our plan now is to just take it easy here for another week or so, go out for short day sails, and see if Susan will be able to acclimate. I have hope!

Commuting in Yelapa

Yelapa main street

Picking up pirate habits!

Starting our jungle trekk

View from the room

Watching over dad on the boat

Mexican planters

New Yelapa room, new view

On the way to La Cruz from Yelapa

At the beach in La Cruz

Awesome fish market!

Pucker up!

Sunset at the Marina

Just About Sailing Outta Here!! (fingers crossed)

2012-02-25T20:43:00.000-08:00

This is Pancho and Pancho jr, he cleans most bottoms in the marina. Boat bottoms you wierdo.

Hard at work sanding down the boat stripe

Our new goal date is Monday! The tank is done, new lines run, oils changed, added a fuel lift pump, even got one side of the boat stripe painted. Looks pretty good from the port side lol. Hit Costco today and stocked up and got a 3g usb stick from Telcel. I cant believe how much faster this is than piggy backing off of random wifi! Our plan is to check out with the port captain Monday morning, fuel up, and with some luck and prayer we'll sail south!

Cooper finally got his haircut, now he's hiding under the table

New Dodger!

2012-02-16T19:53:00.000-08:00

How do you change your lightbulbs?

Its been an expensive week. Another thousand for the marina (Dam I need to be out of here and on the hook!) $800 for a little yamaha generator, $300 for house batteries and $250 in labor for the new dodger & bimini. I am totally stoked (Morgon says I'm too old to say stoked but I'm doing it anyway) about the new canvas. It turned out better than I thought it would and the price was awesome! I used about 8 yards of the $5 a yard material I got at walmart in seattle (pro tuff, gets comparable ratings with sunbrella) another $20 for zippers and $25 for clear vinyl for the windows puts me at less than $350 for a new dodger and bimini! I had kept the old torn up one for a pattern and sent it off with Miguel so that he had a foolproof pattern and it turned out great!

I paid moorage up until this Saturday. It gave us a goal and a little push to get everything checked off the list so that we could get out of here but it looks like we are going to get a little weather so we'll have to sit tight for another day or two. Everybody is a little disapointed but none of us want our first day out to be hairy so we'll suck it up and get a little more done while we're on shore power.

I need to put the snaps on so it tightens up but it turned out great!
Miguel Angel (Tapizados D Angel) gives great prices on upholstery and canvas work, you can reach him at 322-293-76-58 in PV
He speaks only spanish but his wife speaks great english.

pics

2012-02-11T21:01:00.000-08:00

We spent a little time at starbucks today so I put their wifi to use and uploaded some pictures. These aren't in any paticular order its just such a pain in the a$$ trying to upload off the boat that I thought I'd better get some on here when the opportunity presented itself.

Alora and I just goofin around on laundry day

Dock fishin. We can see em, they just arent bitin!!

View from the dingy on the way to opequimar fuel dock

Strong silent type

He looks vicious but its really a yawn

Just about time for a haircut

Tank Update

2012-02-02T20:41:00.001-08:00

That's right, I am still working on the tank. Having someone weld it sorta fell through so I bit the bullet and decided to open it up and fiberglass the entire tank, using my delapidated rusted tank as a mold in the hull. I spent about four days cutting the top off then scraping out the tank and grinding it clean. Then, as long as I was down there, I spent a day and a half cleaning about 12 inches of 15 to 30 year old crap out of the bilge. That pretty much did me in. I have been sick for the last three days. Feel like a truck ran me over, my throat is so swollen up I cant swallow and I have been hiccuping for about eighty straight hours now. Dammed if I know why the hiccups but I figure it's got to be related somehow. Oh well, enough whining. The work has got to go on and I am glad that petrie dish I call a bilge is now clean; one more coat tomorrow and I'll be ready to glass on the lid and run my lines.
I would have taken a day off but we sent the cushions out to get reupholstered, so Susan and the kids have no place to sleep on the boat and are back at the hotel. This kind of work I'd really rather do while they aren't here. Oh yeah! I didn't tell you about the cushions. Before I came down I got a really good deal on fabric for the sailcovers, dodger, and cushions thinking that I would learn to sew and put them all together. Well, with the fiberglassing I think that I am learning on the job enough for now. So I asked Pancho (the bottom scraping crocodile scrapper) to find me somebody to put them together. The fella he brought by seems really professional and the price we agreed on was more than fair, 6000 pesos ($450) to do all nineteen cushions, replacing the foam in eight of them. You can tell by the price he doesn't usually work on boats. Hopefully he is done with them tomorrow, I am really anxious to see how they look. And yes, we will post pics, but not before we're done. Right now we look like hillbillies with junk hanging off the boat and halfway up the dock so I dont want to post them until I'm not embarrassed of the way it looks.

Diesel Tank Nightmares

2012-01-26T19:43:00.000-08:00

That bucket beside me is full of two gallons of crap that I scraped out of the fuel tank

We have been plugging along over the last few days. I had held out hope that I could repair and save the fuel tank but after spending two days emptying and scrubbing it out I have found that it is just too pitted to want to try and repair. I am going to have to cut it out and get another built. I'll lose some capacity, from 90 gallons to about 65 but it is quicker and easier than tearing out all the cabinets to try and gain the last 25 gallons. We will just have to deal with carrying a little extra on deck for the longer treks. Dave put me in touch with a welder and it sounds like it'll cost me around 5000 pesos, about $400. Not too bad really but a hundred at a time has really been adding up. I cant wait to be out of this marina and on the hook.

This is the only zinc I had left on the hull

Pancho came back today to finish putting zincs on for me but was short one so he'll be back tomorrow. I'll try and get a picture. He is a real character. Sixty three and still working six days a week cleaning bottoms and changing zincs. He is missing two fingers right down into his left hand, I told Alora that the croc in the marina got him. Pancho cant always be lucky.

Adding new meaning to "water hazzard" at the golf course next to the marina

The Rat Came Back!

2012-01-26T18:16:00.000-08:00

At two in the morning on Wednesday Susan woke me up to tell me the rat was back in the cabinet. I went through the same motions. Grabbed the flashlight, stealthily snuck up to the cabinet and swung open the door. " AWW JESUS, ITS HUGE" I yelled and jumped back before I even really got a look at it. I could only really see its back hunched up over the bag of popcorn and its beady little eyes looking at me from over the torn open bag of chewed up crackers. I mention this in my defense because Susan walked up behind me and I could hear the disgust in her voice when she said " That... that’s it? Its barely a mouse. That little thing is really what you got all wound up about?".
I stand by my opinion that this is only a smaller relation of the original rat, that one was big... really it was.
Anyway we chased him out in a comedy of crashing dishes and screaming little girls, closed the hatches and port holes and listened to his little feet pitter patter across the deck for the rest of the night.

We Have Finally Started Our Adventure!

2012-01-18T20:55:00.000-08:00

It seems I have failed my goal of posting at least once a week and so much has happened over the last three weeks it is going to be hard to get it all down here and I’m going to have to leave some out or I’ll be up half the night.

We had Christmas in Port Orchard at Greg and Patti’s place; after the newscast greyhound made sure to have a seat on the bus for Colton so we were all together. Greg and Patti made us all feel like family, baking cookies with the kids and cooking a fabulous rib roast for Christmas dinner. They even had a stocking stuffed full with their names written across the top in glitter glue for each child . Everyone had a great time and no one seemed to mind so much that we were homeless and in limbo.

I don’t want to sound unappreciative, we weren’t exactly homeless. Over the last few months our extremely patient family has put up with us on their couches and floors and in their refrigerators while unexpected delays pushed back our launch date, and we thank you all so much Mom, Angie, Jerry and Sharon.

After months of planning, preparation and waiting we finally caught a plane out of Seattle and on January 4^th we were headed for Puerto Vallarta to start our adventure and set sail for the south!

The boat was torn apart when we arrived as I was still trying to fix the leaks in the water tank; so Susan and the kids stayed in a room at Hotel Flamingo on the shore of the marina while I slept on the boat with the dogs. It is a great old hotel, one of the first built on the marina so it probably dates back to the 50’s and in its heyday I am sure it was probably the place to be in Vallarta. The views from our room were great as were the staff. Everyday Alora would race back to the room to see what new animal housekeeping had folded for her out of a towel. It is probably the cheapest hotel in the marina area and at $70 a night including tax (online price only) it was a pretty good deal and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it.

The kids are loving it. Everyday they spot puffer fish, angel fish or rays in the water and there are dozens of big black iguanas on the shore and geckos to chase in the evening. We have made friends with an old fisherman from California who catches more tuna than he can eat so we do our best to help him out. I had never had fresh grilled tuna steaks before and they have now become my favorite fish. A little olive oil, pepper and sea salt is all they need to have the five of us (seven actually because the dogs get into the action) gorge ourselves to the point of incapacitation. There is a little roadside restaurant across the street called “Los Mapaches” which translates to “The Raccoons” of which there are dozens. They come to your table and beg for food and will even climb up and take their own seat at your table. Alora has decided that we need to eat there every night.

Most of what we have been doing over the last two weeks is working on the boat, tearing it inside out and putting it back together. I will put together a run down of the boat work on the vessel page rather than go through it all here. Suffice it to say that after ten days we were finally able to all move onto Tenacious. Tonight is our fourth night on the boat as a family and everyday it gets a little more comfortable. Soon I hope to be able to put the housework behind me and go to work on the running and sailing gear. We are planning to set sail out of Vallarta by the end of the month but like I said before, we are now writing our goals in pencil.

Back in Seattle for Christmas but Getting Screwed Over by Greyhound, Bah Humbug!

2011-12-22T23:39:00.000-08:00

Follow the link for the Komo News story, http://www.komonews.com/news/local/Companys-mistake-could-cost-family-their-Christmas-together-136127823.html?tab=video#idc-container
We will all be heading back to Puerto first thing January. We'll keep you posted!

Danger in Mexico!! and the Rumble With the Rat 2011 finale (I hope)

2011-12-16T22:25:00.000-08:00

The real dangers in Mexico are not the drug cartels, banditos or shady hombres in dark alleys. The real dangers are worse, they wait until you don't expect it and sneak up on you. Taking you unprepared and unaware.
The first is something you think you know well and trust. The real danger is your sphincter, yes your own sphincter. FOR GODS SAKE be conscious of your sphincter and be ultra careful with your flatulence. Unfortunately there is no inconspicuous way to wipe off the crap that's running down the back your leg. While you're coolly and nonchalantly using up every napkin at the table so that you wont leave a trail when you walk out your awkward twisting and craning will draw every eye in the crowded open air cantina (thank God its open air). After a week of tortas and tacos death by embarrassment will not be quick and painless.
(Names have been omitted from the previous paragraph to protect identities... don't go saying it was me)
The other is chafing. I have had the opportunity as of late to do an up close and personal study on chafing. Mexicans do not seem to be affected. You can see that this is true as they do not have the squatting bowlegged walk that has been adapted by so many of us gringos. There can be two reasons for this.
The first hypothesis is that after countless generations spent hundreds of years walking through the sand to bring helpless gringos margaritas and time share sales pitches Mexicans have genetically developed inner thigh skin not unlike that of a tortise shell. This thick meaty strip of skin is what protects them from chafe in this hot climate.
The other possibility is that when I walk my fat sweaty ass rubs together halfway down to my knees.
I don't think that's it though... I'm going with the genetic skin thing.
On to happier subjects, I now believe I am rat free. I with that I could take full credit due to my hunting prowess but I don't think that is the case. Apparently I'm just not very good company. But I learned a few things hunting my rat. I couldn't find the snapping rat traps so I bought the kind that the rat wanders onto and then gets stuck in a nasty gooey, sticky substance. After two unsuccessful days of waiting for the rat to fall into one of my traps my amigo Octavio asks what kind of food I put in the trap... food... oh yeah, food. Stupid gringo.
Octavio was also of the opinion that a big rat would just carry this thing away. I think Octavio was wrong. Which brings me to the second thing that I learned. Do NOT place a trap on the floor of the galley. You will forget its there and step into it. In the dark. In the middle of the night. Trying to pull all that crap loose I had begun to think that it might be easier to just tie shoelaces across the top of my foot and try to pass it off as a sandal. I guess I should be grateful that they didn't have the snapping kind.
Other than these slight challenges things are going well. I tore out the entire main salon and flooring so that I could cut the top off of the water tank and glass the bottom. I washed the outside of the boat down and the teak looks good and I am sure that we'll be able to bring it back to life. I am finally getting to the point where my list is actually getting shorter rather than longer every day. We will be on the open ocean before we know it! No big rush though, we are on Mexican time now. Everything gets done manana.

Made it to Mexico! but sans family : (

2011-12-07T20:06:00.000-08:00

I am exhausted and running on an hours sleep so I'm just gonna write a short note and try and fill you in later.
I left from Seattle yesterday just before 9pm, six hours of layovers and two connections later and I landed in Vallarta at 1:00 this afternoon. The boat is dry and except for the forward running lights (what the hell??) its all here. After a stop at the marina supply I see why they made off with them at $60 a piece. The boat is a mess though. Its a good thing I came down ahead of Susan to do some clean up or she would've taken one look and headed straight for the nearest Hilton with a long stop at the tequila bar.
So while I am laying in my bunk tonight trying to relax building mental to-do and gotta-have lists a scratching noise breaks through my concentration. I jump up, grab the flashlight and swing open the cabinet door! Staring back at me with big doe eyes is a colossal mutant rat, not afraid or on the run (the rat not me... I might be a little afraid), he just sits there.. watching me. Apparently I've been feeding him pretty well over the last few months.
After an intense staring match, both of us looking at the intruder, I cave, closing the door to let him get back to dinner. I figure if he's good and full he's less likely to be eyeing me up like an after dinner snack.
Rat traps, one more thing for the list. Don't worry honey, he'll be gone before you get down here.
He better be or the kids'll want to get him a collar and keep him around.

2011-11-18T11:39:00.000-08:00

Susan says I skipped about four months, and I did. So I’ll try and fill you in.
After talking with the attorney (I’ll get into that story another time) it looked like everything here might get done early and we would be able to head out in four to six weeks (didn’t turn out that way). So we jumped in with both feet and got ready to go.
Morgon and I built a 10X20 mini barn at Greg and Patti’s place (thanks Greg and Patti) then we crammed in most of our stuff and sold off or gave away truckloads more. We had been living in that house for six and a half years and had accumulated a ton of furniture, toys and treasures. It took the five of us every day of our last month to get it all packed up and until we closed the door of the shed Susan said we’d never fit everything in there.
We had some consults with the school counselors concerning hardcore home school (thank you Shari!). The kids knocked off a couple of online classes quick because we knew that in the initial move a few months of studies would be lost in all the excitement, and I started the online classes I would be taking . This is part of the way we are paying for this, Canada will pay student loans and grants no matter where you go to do your studies. Thank you Canada!
The support we have been getting has been really surprising. I expected people to tell me that we were nuts. I mean, what the hell were we thinking! Instead friends and colleagues I really respect have been totally encouraging and have helped to keep us on track and our fears in check. The biggest shock was my Mother. I put off telling her for weeks. Thirty eight and still afraid of an ass chewing from my Mom. She was hesitant and quiet when I first told her but called me back the next day to tell me she thought it was an awesome idea and we should be packing. Not at all what I was expecting, but totally appreciated! Without all of these great people I think that we may have chickened out.
Two weeks at a time our flight date has been pushed back. Our initial four to six weeks is in the distant past and we are now closer to the original schedule. At this time our hope is to be flying out sometime in the first two weeks of December but we have learned by now to write our plans in pencil. After Dec 14^th the ticket prices jump way up so we’ll keep our fingers crossed. In the meantime things are going pretty good. Its not Mexico but all in all its been pretty cool living like gypsies.
I have done some research on Mexican work visas and we’ll get those once we’re in the country. We do not have unlimited funds (yeah I know, you’re really surprised) so if we decide to stay longer than the six months we have committed to we need to be able to make some money down there. Our plan is to burn up about three months finding where we would like to settle, then move ashore and charter the boat for occasional day sails and sunset cruises to keep us in cervezas and tamales. The three months will also allow us the time we need to get the boat ship shape and pretty. She needs work. She actually needs a hell of a lot of work. But right now it costs a mint just keeping her in a marina so if we can have her on the hook for a few months that’ll allow us a little extra money to put into her upkeep. That, a lot of elbow grease and a little luck will get her back to beautiful.
So much has happened over the last few months that I am sure I have forgotten lots but now that I have given out the address for this blog I will try and be a little more vigilant and keep all of you up to date.

On the Oregon Coast

2011-11-15T14:47:00.000-08:00

We are learning to roll with the punches. It is now November 11^th and it will be at least another three weeks before we are able to fly out. That puts our schedule out by over seven weeks all together. We are all a little disappointed, we have a plan and are ready to go but Murphy keeps messing with us.
Once the whining was out of the way we took a reality check and counted our blessings. We stayed the first month at Susans sisters place in Grants Pass Oregon and while that was great; her sister was a wonderful hostess; we thought we had better move on before we wore out our welcome. We headed to the coast and found a great off season deal on a one bedroom cabin with a loft in Bandon. Our days are spent exploring the beaches, at the game farm or crabbing and we are eating like kings! Dinner last night was crab, mussels clam chowder and halibut cheeks (my Dads favorite) and breakfast was pan fried oysters on toast.
I’m getting hungry again.

7/18/2011

2011-09-20T17:01:00.001-07:00

Okay, this is it. We’ve made the decision. We wanted to go, talked about it, haphazardly planned for it.. But now its really here. If we are careful we now have enough money to make it happen. We are moving to Mexico.
I told myself that if we were able to put it together and go there were two things that I wanted from the five of us. One, everyone will keep a daily journal, or logbook since we will be on a sailboat; and two, we all must make a real effort to become fluent in Spanish.
The journal is hard for me. It feels like homework. Its not that I really mind it, just that I always seem to have something better to do. But if I expect it from everyone else.. Practice what I preach right. So now that this trip, or excursion, or crazy journey is this close and tangible, if I start now, write a little every day, maybe, hopefully, it will come a little easier when we are down there and it is more important.
The thing that surprises me, the wonderful thing, is how much we all want it. Susan isn’t going for me, the kids aren’t being dragged kicking and screaming. In fact it is the opposite, we are all chomping at the bit. We all want the experience.
If I am being realistic about the timeframe, which is really difficult for me, we are at least four months away from the move. I want to say three but even I know how unlikely that is. In fact this started as a to-do/spend list but that felt even more like homework than this. The sheer volume of things we must complete over the next few months is daunting to me. We have lived in this house for over six years. Six years of a family of six accumulating tons and tons of toys, knick knacks, furniture and treasures. And they are treasures, I am not being facetious, this is our history. Then there is our U.S. immigration, preparing for home school, my online college classes, the animals. The list goes on. It seems huge to me but Susan takes it in stride, at least the house stuff, which is the one that gives me the most grief. Just sitting here I look around and think “ there is a hell of a lot of stuff here”. but it will all come together. We are dedicated, and I really believe we can pull it off.

Why blog this?

2011-08-26T07:33:00.000-07:00

I am not computer literate. I don't facebook (Susan and Morgon do), twitter or even text; but with luck in a few short weeks we will be living in cramped quarters off the western coast of Mexico. I expect communication with family and friends will be a little more challenging and hope that this will allow them to feel a little more in touch; and if we are successful in this endeavor maybe others will see how we did it, decide to cut their ties to the real world and ~~run away~~ (scratch that), run to life as well.