What I'll Miss

While trying to decide what to write about this week, I asked for Michael's opinion.  As usual, he replied with a few good ideas.  Today's post will be '5 things I will miss' once we cast off the dock lines. With that said, next week I will write about some things I will not miss.

If you have been reading our blog you can probably take an educated guess regarding what one of my missed item will be.  No doubt about it.  High on the list of things I will miss is (drum roll): my cowboy boots.  It's true.  I have a profound affection for western boots.  I have always had a love for the western lifestyle and even have a vision of myself as a cowgirl, like Annie Oakley (Michael thinks I'm more like Calamity Jane). My boots are an extension of my love for the western lifestyle and attitude.  Let's face it, cowboy boots have attitude and are extremely versatile in their use.  They can be worn while mucking out stalls at the ranch, twirling around a hardwood floor, or kicking the crap pulverising an ex boyfriend's wounded heart.  Of course I wouldn't know anything about the latter. I'm just saying cowboy boots got  could get the job done. They can be worn with jeans, a  casual maxi dress, daisy dukes, or under a formal, with or without spurs. They exude  strength, determination, and confidence.   I will certainly miss wearing my cowboy boots out boot-scootin on a Saturday night after eating raw fish at our favorite restaurant, Masa Sushi. ( that's still only counts as one thing, right?)

 

                                      

The second item on my list of things I will miss, in no particular order is: friends.  I have been very fortunate to form mutual relationships, and lucky to share affection, sympathy, understandings, and compassion with a cast of characters I feel blessed to call my friends. 

 

My friendships cross many different boundaries.  Some friendships are work related, some are dance related, some friends are rodeo committee members, some we ride motorcycles with, party with, sail with, and some we make fun of  tell jokes about to.   My point is simply that there are a lot of people in our current orbit with whom we get to express our feelings without fear of judgment.  Take for example the little, lime green lizards roaming our yard and flower beds.  They are my little friends and I will miss them.  I talk to these diminutive tiny guys and it's so much fun to watch them look at me, turn their heads inquisitively, and bob up and down while thrusting out their throat.  When I talk to these critters they accept me for who and what I am; a giant psycho woman that can crush them in an instant.  No, I am not a nut case. I just think they are so cute with their little, lime green bodies and bugged-out eyes. I feel sorry for them when I see one with it's tail missing, and if I see one in our home, I capture it and release it back into his world. I feel the same way about our cow surfing friend.  He has truly opened our eyes and given new meaning to our understanding of cow a bunga.  Several times we have captured him only to release him back into his cow surfing world so he could thrust out his throat in harmony with the universe.  

                     

Just look how this little guy is looking at me.... can you feel the love???

Cow a bunga dude.

The convenience of having a washer and dryer will certainly be high on the list of things I will miss.  I can't imaging going to a laundromat with a fist full of coins to wash clothes.  I have not even been in a laundry facility since my college days.  Ugh!  I'm sure if you know who has his way; clothing will become an option.  In his mind naked less clothes, equal less laundry.  I have heard many cruisers adopt the rock and a bucket method of washing clothes.  Oh boy! I can't wait.  I wonder how Michael's bikini briefs will look flying in the breeze from the mast spreaders on a sunny day? 

I try not to think about it, but I will miss my family.  They are spread out all over the nation, except for my youngest daughter Courtney, and even she is over an hour away.  Erica, my pro stock driving daughter is in NOLA, my mother is in Da Burg, and my brother is in Arizona.  Michael is in the dog house, the only one close.  He is not really family, just some cute, good looking stud I keep around because of certain benefits.  Like raising the main sail, grinding winches and cooking fantastic meals.  Hey, wait a minute.  I wonder if I can train him to do laundry?  Note to self.  Get Michael a personalized laundry rock and bucket.  Anyway, even though my family is not close enough to visit often, I still get to talk with them almost daily and see them several times a year.  While on Adventure Us 2 in international water, I'm not so sure.

 

Erica and Courtney at the Houston Rodeo 2013

 

I don't consider myself a pampered princess, but there are certain maintenance issues that require attention from time to time.  Currently I can easily access certified magicians in various fields of expertise when needed. I have been enjoying the benefits of the same group of miracle workers for years.  I'm sure I will miss not being able to pick up the phone and make transformation requests appointments. (Shhh..  Don't tell Michael, he believes this package is put together naturally.)   I wonder if I can figure out how to stowaway my nail lady, my hair colorist, my massage therapist,  beautician, plastic surgeon, clothing consultant, and beauty supply clerk without him knowing! 

There you have it.  My first list of things I will miss.  Obviously there are many more things I will miss, but that will just have to wait and become fodder for other posts.

 

The Floor Has Been Ripped Out From Under Our Feet

Let me brag on My Michael for a moment.  Not only because of his total commitment to our lives and events, but also for his sincere dedication to the completion of S/V, Adventure US 2.

Regarding our personal events:

You may recall my mom has been visiting from the da Burgh (Pittsburgh, for you non BLACK and GOLD fans) for the last three weeks.  Michael has been nothing but the most remarkable and  accommodating man two women living (temporarily) under one roof could ever hope for.

Regarding Adventure US 2:

A few months ago Michael pulled a section of the floor out of the aft cabin to see if he could refinish it.  Home it came in the back of his Expedition and into the garage.  I am not sure what prompted him to start this project, or even to  research replacement, other than he did not like the hinges on the access hatches to the under-floor mystery holes, or the way the floor was framed-out around the perimeter.  Whatever it was, he has begun the process of upgrading Adventure Us 2's sole.

After weeks of research and a few phone calls he decided to get a few estimates for the work he wanted to do.  After talking to a number of different tradesmen he made a decision on a craftsman and set a date for the installation.  He did however resolve to do the demolition of the old floor himself.  The scheduled installation date of the new floor, is/was July 9th, so he spent 3 days on his knees tearing the floor out over the Fourth-of-July holiday.

 

My Hero!

Today begins the installation and I can't be more excited to see and post the final product!

 

Mom's Bucket List

Alice, who will be 85 in August, came to Texas to visit for three weeks and to help me celebrate my birthday.  (She loves a good celebration.)  When she informed us she wanted to go sailing, I was pleasantly surprised because she is not a water person.  

We set a date, but I really thought she would back out especially with winds predicted in Galveston Bay at 17 knots on our sceduled date.  This was a tad puzzling to me because her entire life she has reminded her kids, almost daily, how much she dislikes water activities.  I explained to her how Adventure Us 2 would heel and she just shrugged her shoulders like she had no concerns.

Sunday rolled around and she was waiting for us by the front door with her bag full of accouterments:  sunscreen, sun glasses, visor, boat shoes, and barf bag.  Ten minutes later we boarded Adventure US 2 and prepared to motor through the Kemah channel and out into the bay.  It was a gorgeous day and we all looked forward to a great sail!  We sailed for nearly three hours and not a scream, whine, or complaint came from her!  Allthough I did hear one or two  squeels of delight.  It was amazing!  She enjoyed it so much she asked if we could go again before she travels back to Pittsburgh!

 

 

Celebrating with a bucket of cold Tecate at Outriggers after checking sailing off mom's bucket list!



 

 

We All Get To Be a Super Hero Once in a While. By JLee

Michael and I  went to the boat after our late Sunday lunch and as we walked down the dock Michael commented that something was not right.  The AC was not running and he definitely left it on.  After entering the boat he checked the water pump to find that there were two small fish in the strainer.  He handed it to me to clean and as the water from the sink was running into the strainer, one fish stared to squirm and wiggle.  Being the female of the species I screamed shouted: "It's alive"!  I scooped it up and ran up the companion way and dropped it into the water.  When I returned to the galley I finished cleaning the filter and started to scooped up the dead fish to dispose of it and it started to wiggling in my hand.

Round two...scoop, run, and drop. 

Synopsis....I saved two lives today! 
Someone please bring me my super hero cape.

Accessorizing

Finally we are at the point where all things are beginning to come together and AdventureUS2 is beginning to look like our boat! 

You will recall a few posts back (Stressful Fun), I was busy making the decision on what fabric to use  for our salon cushions and  lee cloth covers.  Well, the other day Jackie from Island Furniture text me to let me know our salon seating was finished.  I made an appointment to meet her in order for her to deliver and install the cushions.  I must say, they look absolutely stunning, and the craftsmanship is impeccable.  Now I can spend even more of  Michael's our hard earned money accessorizing.   

After surfing the net for weeks searching for  the perfect decorative pillows, I am leaning toward  sexy animal prints. ( I have never been a flower pattern person, flower child maybe.)  Perhaps a little bit of a zebra print, or tiger pattern. Or how about a sassy snake, reptile, or organic wildlife design? Maybe a pattern reminiscent of feathers or even trees

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Now the REAL fun begins! Accessorize, accessorize, and ACCESSORIZE!  Well, as much as I can without killing 3 miles of Velcro!  Hmmmm, I wonder if I can get Jackie to shoot and skin .... Nah probably not, but I bet I can talk her into putting her machine to work again.
 

What Will I Do Without Country Western Dancing?

By Janet Lee

One of my concerns regarding our sailboat adventure, other than the obvious lack of storage space, is that our everyday familiar objects and routine(s) will under go an extreme and dramatic change. The journey we have laid out for ourselves promises to be the adventure of a lifetime. There are many places we want to explore and experience, and the only way to fulfill our dream is to just turn the page and walk away from our comfortable life, and relationships. Honestly, it makes me a little apprehensive to think about the required transformation, especially when we cut the dock lines.

For example: most Saturday nights, for more than 5 years, we have been patronizing Masa Sushi for our fix of sashimi (we love the top quality fish, staff and management); then we make our way around the corner to Big Texas South for a night of getting physical on the hard wood dance floor.  I am almost certain that we will not find any cowboy dance halls in the Caribbean.  The idea of not whirling and twirling, with boot stomping, hat wearing, rednecks is a daunting thought, but a needed transformation if we are to continue with our goal.



For me, moving into this previously unexplored way of living carries a factor dependant on personal bravery and the courage to think of my life in new, tangible terms.  What will my life be like with out Big Texas, without my Corvette, without my spurs, boots, whips, costumes, and the rednecks, humanoids, cyborgs, and zombies I interact with daily?  I don't know the answer to that question.  What I can rationalize is that it will be different.    Different in a poignantly healthy sort of way.  But not like this:
                                                               
                                 

Still, I wonder if I can shrink wrap my life and store it in a cardboard box plastic bag in the V birth.

 

 

 

Getting Your Oxen Out of the Ditch

When a holiday comes around and we are blessed with a three day weekend, why is it we spend the time working on projects of various kinds?  We work 40 hour a week, plus travel time, and when we get an extra day off most of us like want to dive head first into 'getting our oxen out of the ditch'.   

This past Memorial Day weekend Michael set me up us up for a three day boat burnout project.  I knew it was going to be an exhaustive three days, but it never occurred to me that I would be crawling on my knees, (never should have sold my daughter's volley ball knee pads) and contorting my body into impossible positions while reaching over the side of the boat.  Michael had spent countless hours examining different products and methods of re-finishing the teak toe rail prior to our scheduled nail destroying, body baking, skin dehydrating mission.   His research on all the different products available led him to conclude Honey Teak was the best product to achieve the desired result he we wanted on Adventure Us 2.  Unfortunately for me us the required procedure to achieve the end results was long and involved : two coats here, three coats there, buff this now, then yet another final coat (or two).  All of this was subsequent to him spending several weeks, after his day job, stripping and sanding off the old finish.

 

I made a declaration to Captain Bligh Michael early Memorial Day morning that I was only going to work until lunch time; then I would mutiny and head out to our favorite watering hole on the bay for a bucket of Mexican libation and some raw oysters. At 2pm we finally finished and I was no longer in danger of acting out my interpretation of Fletcher Christian. After three days of bending and contorting every which way, I finally got my reward!

Ahhh, I love rewards.