New Stove

Got my new stove today. It's an Origo 6000 non-pressurized, two burner alcohol stove, which is the larger version of the Origo 1500 single burner I already have -- guess I'll keep that one as a backup.

It's a little smaller than the space I've got, so I'll need to add 1 1/2" spacers on each side to mount the gimbals, probably just a couple 3/4" thick blocks of plywood. I'll also have a little more space behind it, so I might be able to use that for storage as well, but will need to be careful since it will be near the stove.

I need to buy some 3/4" plywood to replace the dividers in the cockpit lockers, so I should have enough left over to mount the stove. I can use the burners now, but need to wait until it's mounted to use the oven. Looking forward to baking bread -- sorta like Chichester did on his circumnavigation. I picked up his book, Gypsy Moth Circles the Globe, shortly after moving onto the boat and finished it a few weeks ago. It was really good, but the main things I learned from it were what not to do -- some of which I already knew. Singlehanded sailing was still in it's infancy back then; He did his singlehanded circumnavigation via the clipper route in 1967.

I just finished another book about Magellan's circumnavigation (he actually died in route) last week that a friend from McManus, Justin (another Justin, not the owner), gave me right before I moved from Manhattan. It was pretty good as well, but wasn't quite as applicable as Chichester's book-- he was a singlehander like me. Might sound like a lot of reading, but other than those two books, studying for my license, doing some research and ordering online, I've been working pretty much every day, though not making as much progress as I'd like.

Haven't painted the cockpit yet -- problems with weather, etc. -- but have the entire deck cleared off and almost ready for painting. So, I should be able to do the whole thing at one time, or at least large sections. I have to mix the expoxy, so it's better if I have more area available so I won't waste any of it -- it only lasts about a hour or so once it's mixed.

Hoping to start remounting deck hardware next week. I'll need help, so I'm hoping a friend will drop by. Otherwise, I'll have to hire someone from the yard. However, I think I can do a good deal of it myself using gorilla tape, but that takes a lot longer since you have to keep going from one side to the other (which can be a long way and require you to crawl into a small space) to adjust the wrench. With someone on the other side, it's really quick. I took it all off with gorilla tape, but putting it back on requires caulking which adds to the complexity.

To get the deck clear, I removed the 1x4 stringers from the cover's frame and lashed it with one of my old halyards. Then I moved the legs of the "rafters" off the deck and onto the toe rail, and to keep them from slipping off, I had to lash the bottom of one side to the other side about a foot of so down from the ridge. It seems even more sturdy and rigid than it did when they installed it -- Paul would be proud of me.

That's Paul Smoke. He was my first boss, back when I was 16, and he and his girlfriend let me live with them when my father kicked me out of the house later that summer. Paul was a framer at the time and taught me how to be a carpenter -- comes in handy. I ended up working for Paul several times over the years and still keep in touch. He's married with 4 grown kids now and owns a sign business in Baytown. Was hoping to get down there this summer, but with the oil spill, that probably isn't an option.

Anyway, it's a nice day, so I'm going to see if I can get the rest of the deck ready for painting.