Spring is Sproinging!

I am heavy into bicycle training and work right now so have not been doing as much boat stuff as I really want to. I have tried a variety of methods to strip the old Cetol off the teak - So far I have not found a really good method. I think my plan of a little at a time with lots of elbow grease will be what does it. I tried a chemical stripper which sort of worked. Heat gun did not help at all. 

Since the weather has not really been good for lounging about outside working on teak I have been doing inside work. 

I bought a small shop vac that takes drywall and soot sized filter bags and completely cleaned the diesel stove. That job has not been done since the stove was installed and was a messy but satisfying afternoon's work. I am attacking the galley counter now which is in need of sanding, cleaning and refinishing. I think the wood is strips of oak that Dad got out of a surplus deal somewhere. 

Once the weather is a little more reliable I plan to start on the topsides which are in need of a sanding and paint job.

I am still pondering plans for new sails but I think this year we will be limited to maintenance and electrical work. 

Meanwhile I am getting some really fun sailing in on a raceboat "Corvo" I just joined the Wednesday night crew onboard last week and had a hoot! It is quite a different boat to sail than Attitudes. 

Mucking About in Boats

There is nothing half so much worth doing as mucking about in boats. In them or out of them, it doesn't much matter. - The Water Rat, WInd in the Willows.

Attitudes at New Home

Attitudes meets tanker wake.

Well today was the big day. Attitudes got to go to her new home in the big city. Unlike most of my other boat moves it was a lovely day - not freezing cold. There where a few clouds out and the temp was crisp but it was a very nice day. We had Esra drop us at the Bremerton Ferry and took a taxi from the Ferry dock to Brownsville marina. I have to admit that after so many years at Brownsville it was a little hard to leave. It is a wonderful marina with many friendly people.  I am going to miss having a boat there but it will be very nice to be able to leave work and head to the boat for a little downtime in the evening every once in a while..... I am looking forward to getting some maintenance work done on it also. There are so many things on a boat that just take frequent short squirts of work to keep them done. I want the boat to look loved and carried for again.  My first item on the list is teak. Gonna get the teak stripped and refinished. I figure I will do a little section at a time. But first gonna spend a day at the boat show tomorrow.

Quote of the Day: Never too late

It's never too late to be who you might have been.

-George Eliot

Dockside Grill at John Wayne Marina, Sequim Bay

Ummmmm Yummy! While vacationing in Port Townsend last weekend we took a side trip over to John Wayne Marina in Sequim Bay and decided to have an early dinner at the Dockside Grill located at the marina. Boy was I glad we did! Everything we had was great! There was not much in the way of vegetarian meals but I wanted seafood so ordered the seafood salad and Sinan was happy with the Fettuccine. We also had their Cheese Duo appetizer which had both baked brie and cambazola cheeses with tomato relish and baked garlic. Everything was good - Everything was too much so I could not try the desserts - although they looked absolutely wonderful! It is a little pricey and being a small place I would recommend a reservation - we lucked out in that we arrived right at 4:00 - early enough to beat the crowd.

Boat Haul Out - Afloat Again

Yep the boat is safely back in the water and nice and slippery in the water with her clean bottom and smooth prop. We were on Standby at the port for launching but they managed to get us in by about 10:00 right after the Hunter sailboat they tried to launch but because it was leaking too much they had to pull back up. The guys at Port of Port Townsend are great to watch - they are really quite masterful at pulling boats in and out in all sorts of conditions. When launching they lower the boat and wait with it in the slings until you are sure everything is ok.
And the guys at Gold Star Marine get a - well they get a Gold Star! they did a fine job working through my various tasks - I had asked them to install a battery box for a third battery I had and they did more than that - cleaning up a rats nest of wiring and hooking the battery up - they had missed one part of the connection though which they quickly made right at the dock. I am quite happy with the care they took of Attitudes and plan to bring her up for the next big job once I save enough pennies!
After getting up at the crack of dawn today we did not feel like going far - We only went as far as Point Hudson Marina at the other end of town and after a trip to town for a beer and bookstore we have spent the afternoon reading and relaxing. I have the stove cranked up and am heating up some grub then I expect to get back to some heavy reading and sleeping.

Kabul

I have been trying to get my spousal unit to come with me to the Kabul Restaurant in Seattle for quite some time now. He is a rather strict vegetarian and always has the response that Kabul would be a very meat centric place.
But I have been running in to it pretty much every time I search for Vegetarian Fare in Seattle and have been curious to go there. So off we went.

Excellent Food! A little pricey but not too bad. They have a very good vegetarian section on the menu but I notice they also had a variety of carnivore fare!
I'd go back...