Saturday December 24: Merry Christmas!

It's the holiday season again and we feel very fortunate to be again spending it on the boat. Dinner on Christmas Eve - the Drouhard tradition - tonight.

Tomorrow a potluck at sunset with the folks in the marina who are around. We'll celebrate our Christmas with Rebecca, Matt and Wendy in February in sunny southern California.

A heartfelt Happy Holidays to all of our blog followers:-)

Thursday December 21: More Work but Also Play

There is still a great deal of work happening with the boat - but the nice part is that it is so easy to see the difference.

Steve first washed both sides of the boat as he prepared to repaint the area of the boat that was scratched up during Irma. Most likely from the anchor platforms on other boats bouncing around and banging into the front sides

Fortunately none of the boats had an anchor on the platform or the results would have been much worse.

Next step was to sand and then prime the repair area.

Even with just the primer on it looks SO much better!!

Last step is to put on a finish coat of Brightside paint. The boat was originally painted before we bought it in 2005 and we have continued the tradition.

Makes for a nice finish and it's very forgiving when there are scratches to be repaired. One more step to getting the boat back to what it was. Painting the anchor was another project Steve completed the other day. It looks so much better :-)


There is also time to play - especially the past few days which have been calm and not so hot.

Out for a kayak ride - and I'm learning to watch where NOT to put my fingers when taking a picture with the phone :-)

My contribution hasn't been near what Steve's has been but then whose counting, right?

I can still do the sewing part at least. Canvas has been ordered for a new cover for the flybridge area (also lost to Irma) but first the straps that hold the flybridge cover down needed to be replaced so that was a relatively quick job. Steve can now replace the ropes that he used in the meantime.

The manatees are back! So nice to see again :-) They are drawn to the dock in front of us because of the faucet that leaks.

It is still exciting to see them come in even though their appearance is by no means unique.







The sign at Porky's - one of our breakfast places. Not the Free Beer Tomorrow so much as the smaller sign above: Here We Salt Margaritas - Not Sidewalks.

Very appropriate as we continue to be in touch with family and friends who still live where the white stuff falls!

One more Irma job done: the windlass fuse breaker was underwater for about 2 months as the boat sat on its side with water partially in the front cabin. Not a hard fix - just again one more thing that needed attention before we were going anywhere. Windlass now works!!

Finally - today was the perfect day for dinghy fishing! Basically no wind and the tide changing at the right time for a 9 am leave time.

Off went Steve and Flint from Grace Full. Destination was the 7 mile bridge. This is a nice 1 1/2 mile ride from Banana Bay and is a perfect place to fish as the current flows quickly under the bridge. Exactly what the fish like.

It was a great day - in fact probably the best day ever for fishing under the bridge!

From top to bottom:

11 lb permit
2 lb bermuda chub
3 yellowtail snapper (largest ever!)
5 chubs

Steve with his permit fish.

Fresh fish for dinner I think!









Funny thing was that before he left, Steve decided to take a knife "in case we catch a fish that doesn't fit into the cooler"





How right could he have been? :-)

Stevedore has decorated for the season and the perfect reflection in the water the other night was very nice :-)

Thursday December 14: Getting Rid of Those Constant Sources of Annoyance

Some days are ruled by those little things that don't work right - or just not the way  they should or the way I expect.

Yesterday was the start of dealing with several of those issues! Ever since coming to Banana Bay in 2011, the internet has been an issue. Sometime it's ok, some time it's non-existent and then the rare day when it actually works well! So I'd complain that this isn't the way it should be. If a marina advertises it has wifi, then HAVE IT - and not just sitting by the office. It's a problem way too common when we're traveling. Hence we use a Verizon hot spot for our primary internet - not inexpensive but it's a solution.

At docktails the other night, the internet - or the lack of it - situation was being discussed when Stephen on Stevedore mentioned that at one point they were getting internet through Comcast (the cable TV provider for each boat). Really? Is that possible?

Yes it is! I called, signed up and then drove to the Comcast office here in Marathon to pick up the equipment. By noon, it was hooked up and activated!! It's a giant modem but that's ok - it works GREAT! Not inexpensive at $60 a month but worth every penny for sure and our Verizon hot spot has been retired for the time being :-)


Then there are some of the vinyl miniblinds that after 10 years just don't work very well anymore. I pull the string to let them down but have to then physically pull the blind down. Minor inconvenience for most of the blinds due to location but the one over the bed is particularly annoying. I can reach the string without climbing on the bed but not the blind itself. Arrrrgh ...

Steve picked up a new one at Home Depot - time to swap this one out.

Not terribly hard to do :-) Even with a bum hand! Steve had to do some of the small detail threading of string through the holes to finish up though. Done. On to the next thing (for Steve).




The damage to the rails from Irma are not only visually distressing but are also dangerous - especially if we are out on the water. Steve has been itching to get them repaired so when the weather permits, we can head out for an overnight trip.

He decided to start by repairing the piece that was torn off of the flybridge. It was found intact by Shelly at Driftwood - fortunate find as it made the job way easier.

There was a chunk of wood missing from the corner that will be replaced with a piece of teak cut from the broken front railing. Once fitted, glued in, and finished with cetol it should look great!

In the meantime, Steve found a very nice young man that works at Keys Welding. He is coming out tomorrow to give us a price and date on replacing the broken front railing. We're thinking to just replacing the wood with a stainless steel railing - about 10 feet or so on both sides of the bow.

The boat next to us has a wood to stainless transition and it looks quite nice.We'll see ....




So with more of the constant sources of annoyance are being removed, life is getting better :-)

.
And we are reminded that even though there is still a great deal of rubbish from Irma along Route 1, Christmas is returning to the keys.

This is the tree made from lobster pots that makes it's appearance yearly. So nice to see ....

Sunday December 10: Be Careful For What You Are Wishing!

 Being in Ohio for a week was enough :-) And it was due to be even colder so of course what was on our minds was returning to the warmth of the Keys.

The approaching cold front was due in Tuesday night but we really weren't prepared to have to scrape the heavy frost off of the rental car in Columbus on Wednesday morning.

The rental places in the north will often have a scraper in the car but that was not our luck this time! So we used what we had: credit cards and drivers licences :-) Worked fine and it saved sitting in the car with the defroster running for the 15 minutes it would have taken for the car to warm up enough to melt the impossible to see through frost on the front windshield.

The time of our arrival to Ft. Lauderdale at 12:45 was perfect as my appointment to have the stitches removed from my thumb was for 3:00 but the ever accommodating office at the Clinic in Weston said to just come whenever we wanted. Out and on our way by 2:30 in order to beat the traffic to the Keys.

So we were wishing for the warmth of Marathon but got more than we bargained for! Hot, sunny and more humid than usual this time of the year.

Solution? Run the air conditioner and stay inside of course!

Still way better than the cold of Ohio. Besides the cold front was headed here next. Northwest winds 30 knots or so were headed our way and blew in very suddenly Saturday early morning - the day after dumping snow to the southern states that rarely see the white stuff.

This is the neighbors boat docked next to us.

The good part of a cold front is it makes working under the main cabin floor much more comfortable with the cool air. Of course there was yet another job for Steve under the floor. There are quite a few jobs on his list but working on the holding tank was not one of them - until the front head decided to no longer flush!

Suddenly that job became number one on the list!

Remove the 7 foot length of hose and replace it. Not a fun job as any boater has discovered!

Hopefully these issues will finally be resolved and the things needing repaired from Irma can finally begin ......

Saturday December 2: Longing for the Warmth of Marathon!

So after a week in Banana Bay, we find ourselves back in Ohio again - being reminded of why in 2009 we chose to no longer live in this climate for the winter months! Not that it's bad for this time of year. 20's or 30's in the morning and up to low 40's by afternoon. It's just that it's not 70's in the morning and low 80's by afternoon :-)

Still it is beautiful here in the early winter and then there is always the opportunity to sit in front of the great fires that Steve builds (with wood provided by my brothers Pat and Warren!). There is nothing like a Saturday sitting in front of a fire and watching the Ohio State football game!

Photo compliments of Cindy Peterson - Love You More

Of course Cindy posting pictures of a wonderful rainbow in Marathon doesn't help us as we don jeans, fleeces and jackets for the cold!

It was a good first week back on the boat though. Including a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner with boater friends - turkey and all of the trimmings. Thanks to hosts Pat and George :-) !







And there were a couple of projects accomplished. Randy and Cindy helped Steve put the mast back up. It's not terribly difficult to do but an extra hand or two makes the job much easier.

We've definitely come to the conclusion that boats and equipment just do not like to sit unused for 6 months at a time. First a battery issue. Then a fresh water pump problem. Finally a troubled macerator pump which is critical to our holding tank  system. Under the floor went Steve to replace the macerator pump so that problem was solved. A new fresh water pump is ordered and on the way. All systems should be a go shortly after we return next week.

Steve says he wanted the mast back up so he would be able to launch the dinghy in case the weather cooperated and he could do some dinghy fishing.

The real reason? He wanted to put up the Christmas lights! After all, it was now after Thanksgiving so it was time :-)

It makes it very festive in the marina and I'm sure others will be inspired to break out their lights as well!









So my thumb fusion surgery (part 3 of a 4 part plan  for my hands) was scheduled for Dec 8. While we were still out in Phoenix, Dr. Friedman's office called and wondered if I would like to move the surgery up a couple of weeks to the Friday after Thanksgiving. Of course! The sooner the better.

The surgery was very easy (1 hr 20 minutes) and relatively painless. The thumb fusion is done by inserting a 1 1/4 inch screw connecting the two bones in that joint. Once the bone grows around the screw, this joint will be very stable and no more joint pain due to the arthritis!



Stitches will be removed on Wed when we return to Florida and all that is left for now is to wear the very comfortable splint that holds the thumb stationary for 6 to 8 weeks.

The final step 4 of fusing the right thumb will wait for the time being. Still quite functional and minimal pain.

Steve and I both have been so impressed with the Cleveland Clinic in Weston and with Dr. Friedman and his professional staff in particular. What they have managed to do with my hands has been hard to believe. So accommodating and sensitive to our being a 3 hour drive from Marathon.

For now, we will enjoy a few more days in Ohio before returning to Marathon next Wednesday.

Wednesday November 22: Back in the Water - Back to Banana Bay

We arrived late last night and after spending the night in Love You More's front berth, we headed over to Driftwood  Marina.

Our boat was lifted and ready to be put in the water!!

Fresh bottom paint and new zincs - we were ready for the boating season to begin - 2 1/2 months since Irma visited the Keys. we were excited!!




The weather could not have been any more perfect for the 17 mile trip west to the Seven Mile bridge then back east on the bay side to Banana Bay - home for the next four months.

Everything ran great so no damage to the prop or running gear from the boat sitting on the ground for 2 months.

There were several markers missing in the channel out from Driftwood but because the markers still showed on the chart plotter there were no issues navigating in between the shallow areas.

Steve spent most of the 2 hour trip washing and scrubbing the 6 months of dirt from the walk around deck.

The boat looked pretty good by the time we were pulling into our dock. It was so nice to be greeted and helped in by BB friends - some of whom we hadn't seen in 6 months!













So we are here with scuffed up sides and some missing railings but all in good time ....

Meanwhile Steve spent a good deal of time the first day tracking down some electrical issues.

I think boats don't like to sit idle for extended periods of time ...












Our time in California with Matt, Wendy and Becky was great - as it always is. The highlight of the trip was being able to cheer Matt on in his continued quest to qualify for the World's Championship Ironman competion in Kona Hawaii. The Arizona Ironman had 2,500 participants. Add 2,500 volunteers and all the spectators and it is quite an event! Matt has qualified twice already for the World's Championship Half-Ironman but still has his eye on qualifying for the full Ironman (a total of 140.6 miles swim, bike run compared to the 70.3 mile half Ironman).

Below is Matt crossing the finish line at 5:05:59 pm. He started the race at 6:50 am. Doing the math gives him swimming, biking or running for 10 hours, 16 minutes. Non-stop. No breaks. Don't know about you, but I am totally amazed - I for one would be dead ...... He had a very good day and came in tenth in his age group. (The top four earned slots for Kona.) Getting closer!

Wednesday November 8: Ready for Water!

The 6 days we spend in Marathon were super productive. Yesterday's Dream is now ready for launching except for a few bottom repairs (which Randy on Love You More kindly volunteered to do - thanks Randy!!!) and a new bottom paint job which Driftwood Marina will do.

The engine runs great and there was no evidence of water in either the engine oil or transmission fluid so all is good there. Inside cleaned of all mildew. We are ready to launch when we return to Marathon the day before Thanksgiving.

In the meantime, we'll spend a couple more weeks in southern California visiting Matt, Wendy and Becky!

Wednesday November 1: Making Real Progress!!

How great it was to pull into Driftwood Marina today and see Yesterday's Dream sitting up off of the ground and stabilized by 6 jack stands!!

It was only a couple of days ago that the boat was not sitting on the ground since hurricane Irma steamrolled over Marathon and the rest of the Florida Keys.

After spending the last few weeks on the west coast it was definitely good to be back to Florida.

The cabin looked great! Quite a bit of mildew on the teak trim throughout the cabin but none on the wallpaper so that was a win.

Where to start?

First use the small Honda generator to charge the batteries (after filling with distilled water). There is some issue with the battery switch but we saved that for another day.

The biggest priority was to get out the water that had been sitting in the bottom of the boat since Irma.

The water had been in the front of the boat because of the way the boat sat bow down, leaning to the starboard.

Once the boat was picked up and leveled the water ran to the back of the boat and came up to a level several inches above the bottom of the engine.

The marina had a pump which we used to pump the water overboard very quickly.



It was pretty easy to see the change in water level!

Both the oil and the transmission fluid will be drained and replaced just to make sure that water did not make it's way into either the engine or the transmission.











Lots of work to replace the front railing but the pieces/parts are all there so that will at least make it easier to do. And Shelly (marina owner) did find the railing from the flybridge so that was a definite win as well!!

There are still many boats right across from us that still need to be picked up and blocked.

Marathon itself is getting better but still a huge amount of debris that needs to be hauled away.

We'll stay here working on the boat until Tuesday when we return to California for a couple of weeks.

The goal is to have the boat ready to launch the day before Thanksgiving!!

Thursday October 19: Front and Center at Driftwood!!

Yea! The latest picture posted on Driftwood Marina's Facebook page shows Yesterday's Dream still sitting on the ground but also shows that all of the boats that had been blocking the marina from reaching ours have been moved!!

Shouldn't be much longer before our boat is lifted and blocked - making it then possible for us to begin cleaning and fixing. So exciting to see a clear path :-)

Tuesday October 18: And Still We Wait!

So Yesterday's Dream is still sitting in Marathon at Driftwood Marina - waiting for the crane the marina has brought in to clear enough boats so that ours can be picked up and set back on jack stands.

The word we have is that this will be accomplished by Oct 31st when we return to the Keys. We are hopeful that this will be the case!

Steve with his yellowfish tuna 

In the meantime we have enjoyed our time in CA at both Encinitas (where Matt and Wendy live) and at in Glendale (just north of LA) where Rebecca lives.


Steve made use of the time by going on a fishing trip out of San Diego and having a great day at sea!

First by catching a yellowfish tuna (think sushi!)


 and then following this up with the only dorado caught on the trip! The dorado is the same fish called a mahi mahi in Florida.

This was only the second mahi mahi he has caught and is a great tasting fish.


Tomorrow we leave for 7 day cruise around the Hawaiian Islands which we booked months ago.

Timing though turned out to be good as we will return and then head back to Florida to prepare the boat to be launched the day before Thanksgiving.

Thursday October 5: And We Wait .....

Since our trip to the Keys to view the boat a bit over a week ago, we've been spending enjoyable time at the farm in Ohio where my family has lived since 1952.

It's great being around family for a longer than normal time but it's definitely time to move on. Our boat is still sitting where it has been since Irma went through the Keys. No definite timeline for the giant crane that the marina brought in to lift our boat and put it back on stands.

Until then, no one is permitted on the boat - including the insurance adjuster.

So we'll  go to southern California and bum around until the end of October. Surely that will be enough time to  come back to Florida and find our boat up and blocked ...... and find out the ending to this adventure.

Tuesday September 26: Great News!

We were able to walk to where Yesterday's Dream is sitting and found the boat to be in way better shape than we could have hoped.

The worst cosmetic damage was on the bow of our boat where another boat's anchor platform was rubbing on ours up, down and sideways. Fortunately there was no anchor on it though or it would have been so much worse. (We saw some boats that were clearly in contact with an anchor. Anchors are designed to dig in and hold!  It is not pretty.)

There is a small boat under the back edge of our boat that is probably keeping it from being more on its side - definitely a good thing.


The rudder, prop and keel all look ok. Of course we won't know for sure until the boat is in the water and running.






The bottom looks good as well - you can see the small boat that our boat crunched a little. Not a good thing for it for sure.











We marveled at how close the boat on the port side came to being a battering ram with it's anchor platform and anchor.

I'm sure that could have torn out a chunk of railing had the boats still been floating.

One piece of the flybridge railing is missing. My theory is that the emergency throwing ring I had bungee corded to the railing and stanchion was taken by the wind. That was one tough bungee cord!





The other piece of railing missing (well, not really missing as the pieces are likely all there) is the front railing. The hardtop of the boat next to us likely took it out when the water finally receded and the boats all settled.

Two stanchions broke and bent and a length of the railing is broken. Seems to be lying on the deck - or at least part of it.


So, we're not sure when we'll be able to get into the boat but based on what we saw yesterday, we are very hopeful. Of course the boat will need to be surveyed to make certain there is no damage structurally.


The real loser in all of this mess are the folks who live here in the Keys. It is an unbelievable mess.

The picture above is one of the numerous piles of trash which has already been collected around Marathon. A lot of the trash is due to the water surge. Refrigerators, and other appliances lined parts of the highway waiting for pickup and disposal. They were all ruined when the saltwater flooded the residences. A continuous pile of debris lines not only the side streets but the main streets as well. It was encouraging to see a large amount of heavy equipment; cranes, trucks, bulldozers, etc. working to clean up the debris. We wonder how they are going to get rid of all this stuff.

The foliage looks like Ohio in the winter with most of the leaves stripped from the trees and the mangroves. It's just a mess. It is a sad time for the Keys but the work going on is amazing. There is clearly a great deal of outside help trying to clean things up.