WHY WAIT??? Why so few?!!

[CapnK]

Grog for that comment, PJim. :)

Tony, maybe yall didn't get all the way there, but Yall started, and You got at least halfway, and that aint nothing.   8)  ;D

I'm getting closer. Good lord willing and the creek don't rise, I may get to pay some clearing-in money in the next year. Not sure if that'll mean that I'm 'gone for good', but it'll be a step along the way, and if I never go again, a fulfillment of a dream in part, if not as much as always imagined/dreamt/hoped for.  ;D

[Bubba the Pirate]

Hey, Tony
If Scout is at Riverside or somewhere else nearby, let me know if you need something checked on, or pictures sent, or just to reassure her you'll be back soon
     -- let me know. 

I'm still on the road but I'm there a few days a month and pass thru regularly.

[K3v1n]

We are one step closer to the dream, Dorothea is in!

[CharlieJ]

Just sat down and re read this entire thread.. One point I MUST agree with Ralay on- Facebook, etc has bled off a lot of participation in forums. I kinda sorta informally  run a chat on TSBB that was started around 20 years ago and has run continuously since then. In  the early years, we had 17-18-20 folks on chatting every time. Now we are lucky to have 4 or 5.

We also have a chat here on SailFar, every Thursday night at 1930. We MAY get 4 folks. We did snag Ralay one night from when she was way offshore- kind of a different thing, chatting with someone OUT THERE, doing it:) That was really fun!

More of you should join us. We speak sailboats :)

I suppose in a way, I'm one of the fortunate ones- we (my second wife and young son) cruised that trimaran as our full time home, for 3 years and likely would have done longer, but a family problem made me return to Texas, where the boat was sold

After that marriage ended, and I married the third wife, we put Tehani together. We completed the restoration, launched on a Tuesday, and left for Pensacola, Florida on the following Thursday, for a month long trip there and back

Two years later, we did that round trip again

Two years after THAT  we took off on what turned into a close to 3 year cruise. Gulf coast, Keys, Bahamas, and up east coast to Annapolis, with a stop in Georgetown to visit CaptK. While in the Chesapeake, that wife decided she didn't want to be together anymore and left the boat. Joined a cruising boat down in Rio Dulce, Guatamala. I brought the boat back to Texas single hand, including a partial crossing of the GOM

In 2015, I took off for a 3 month trip back to Pensacola and return.

Have now become convinced I am NOT a single hander, so actively searching for a mate. But at 76, begins to look doubtful I'll find a long term lady mate. So I suppose I'll stick to short trips here on the Gulf Coast, which can still be fun :)

[lance on cloud nine]

"begins to look doubtful I'll find a long term lady mate" = there is a beautiful woman with serious sailing skills headed your way! because Mother Nature just loves to shake it up, when we least expect it! Good luck Charlie Enjoy!

[lastgreatgeneration]

Speaking of boat work. You can DIY if you get the required insurance minimums that a marina contractor has. Most cost around $1,000 for a $1,000,000 policy. I don't trust other people to do my boat work.

[CharlieJ]

Depends on yard. I've never had to buy other than liability to work on mine All around the coast

[Frank]

Ever notice how certain topics seem to get a lot of well considered, emotionally substantial replies?  I'll accept the role of lowering the average.  This thread is finally relevant to me (or vice versa). 

Our plans last year were to pull the boat down to FL and finish her in the yard, then hang around the coast and Keys gaining some experience necessary to cross over and explore the Bahamas.  Living and working in the yard was about 5x more challenging than we anticipated.  We took a lot of liberty to "live" the experience instead of focusing entirely on the projects.  Part of that was self-preservation to save our sanity due to NOTHING going the way we wanted; dirt, dust, rain, heat, etc.  Living on a small boat under construction has it's ups and downs..mostly downs but we took it all in stride.

Eventually the money ran out and we had to go back to work.  That meant the prime hours Monday through Friday were spent trading life for money again.  Dream largely on hold again.  Once we made the last mortgage payment Carol and I agreed to work a couple more weeks and then get back to focusing on the boat. We were on the home stretch (until something else pops up) when we got word that our daughter bought a house and would be moving out of our house leaving it empty and unmaintained.  Dream largely on hold again.  So we wrapped up Scout in shade cloth and headed back to MN for the summer.  The intent is to recharge our batteries and bank account head back this fall to pick up where we left off. 

So the wait was unintentional and not really planned.  Life happened, but, in my case it was just poor, or more accurately, lack of planning for the realities we faced.  We went in with high expectations and got schooled by life (again).  Sometimes I feel like I failed and let my lovely wife down miserably.  Then she reminds me that we did something most people will never try because of fear, and, we didn't really fail because we knew we would have to come back eventually.  The plan just changed.  Like it does sometimes.  Pretty much all the time.

The lack of convenient internet access kept me from posting updates.  It's tough to say whether we would have prepared others or scared them away from pursuing the "dream".  I can say that this is by far the most influential forum I have ever run across.  Whether it's help with a project, inspiration, or a good laugh, you can find it here.

Tony
How are you?
Wher3 are you?
What's new?
How is your fine little ship?
Update please 😄