Getting ready to move the boat

I asked Kevin, who manages Coneys, if I could move the boat to a different part of the yard yesterday because the folks who live on the other side of the fence where the boat currently sits, keep setting off fireworks. He agreed, but said it would probably be Monday before they could move her. I'd hoped I could avoid moving altogether and go strait into the water, but recent setbacks mean I'll be here a few more weeks and I don't want to have to deal with the fireworks problem -- they set some off again last Sunday. I mainly just don't want to come back from a walk to find a burning boat -- my cover already has several small burn holes in it.

Right now, I've got a bunch of stuff stacked under the boat, so I'm going to work on getting it cleaned up and moving most of it on board this weekend. That'll make the move much easier. There a few things that will have to stay down there, e.g., I'll leave the boom, whisker poles, and fuel down there, as well as the old crumbling cockpit locker partitions and a few old hoses, but everything else, mainly the portholes, can come on board.

So today, I'll start off by doing laundry and cleaning up the cabin to make room for the portholes (can't remount them till I'm done painting) and other gear. Laundry doesn't take too long, I just use a 5 gallon bucket and wash it under the boat. Once I get to sea, I'll use sea water for the washing and rinsing and just a small amount of fresh water to rinse off the salt -- even better, do it in the rain and use rain water to wash and rinse -- but since I'm in the yard, I just use fresh water from the hose and fill the bucket back up a few times. I think the rule of thumb is five buckets, normally setup in a row with each one a little cleaner than the last as you rinse each item in them successively. That's roughly what I do, except that I only use one bucket and empty it each time.

I also fixed one of my sandals today. The piece that goes between your toes and attaches to the sole on the left one had broken a while back, which sorta disturbs me since they're only 2 months old. I fixed it by sewing it directly through the sole with a #4 waxed sail mending thread. I'll probably have to fix it again before long, since the thread under the sole with end up chaffing and getting worn away as I walk, but at least I'll get some more wear out of them. The right one hasn't broken yet, but it's loose, so I may go ahead and re-sew it this evening as well. I prefer this pair to the ones I've been wearing because they don't mark the deck. The other pair I have are much nicer, but leave little black marks on the deck if I'm not careful.

Zoe watch:

It's a beautiful day today, so she's just hanging out under the bow. We took a long walk this morning down to the town dock so she's sleeping right now, but I'll wake her up and take her out for short walk after I finish washing my clothes. We'll take another long walk later, but it's too nice not to take a walk this afternoon.

Poison ivy watch:

It's mostly gone, but my right hand still itches a little and there are a number of places on my legs that still itch too. It bother me a little last night, but not enough to get up and put on my cream. As soon as the rash is gone from my hand, I'll start working on the deck again. Since the solvents I'll be using might make the rash worse, I decided to wait a few more days until it's completely gone.