One thing is always certain on a boat: nothing quite ever goes as planned.

We were looking forward to Monday with such anticipation! We would get to see Alex again after so many years and we would take AfterMath off the dock for a ride. We were ready! Lunch was made, the dogs were walked, Alex arrived right on time and, unfortunately, it was foggy. By noon the fog lifted, though, and we were really ready to go. Lines were loosened and some untied, the electric cable was disconnected, the dogs’ boarding ramp was stowed, and the engines were on. John went down to do a last minute check of the engine room, however, and found water spraying from somewhere. Everything was retied, reconnected and turned off. After investigation John found the leak, which, although not serious, needed to be fixed. The boat ride turned into a car ride for John and Alex where they found some gasket material and came back to get to work. It was getting late by the time the work was finished so we convinced Alex to stay overnight and have dinner with us. The next morning the repair was completed, but the fog had returned, never to leave again for the rest of the day. There would be no leaving the dock on Tuesday. John and Alex took care of some other chores though, and Alex helped me set up and check out the folding bikes that will be the only means of transportation off the boat beside walking and taxis. Although our plans were not successful, we did enjoy having Alex here and, as usual when he is around, our time was filled with laughter.

Tuesday night was an enjoyable one as our niece, Caroline, and her husband, Mark, invited us to dinner at their house, which is about 45 minutes from Mystic. We were so pleased to see their beautiful home, to spend some more time with them and their baby, Charlie, and to have a wonderful meal that they prepared.

We had plans for my brother, Jack, and sister-in-law, Jean, to come spend the night on Wednesday, but with the delay in taking the boat out for a spin and with an issue with the air conditioning system, we had to postpone our visit. We were so sorry to do so, but Tom, the previous owner, agreed to come by this morning and accompany us on our maiden voyage and to help figure out what was going on with the air. Tom and his wife are getting ready to move to Sarasota, Florida, right near where we lived and today was the only day he could make it, so we jumped at the offer. Tom was here bright and early and, once again, we were ready to go. Thankfully, the air conditioning turned out to be a simple switch in the wrong position, and we once again untied lines, disconnected electricity, stowed the ramp, and started the engines. This time, though, everything was good in the engine room and AfterMath finally moved away from the dock. What a feeling it is when you are out on the water again. John said he saw me just grinning away sitting on the bow with the dogs. I hadn’t even realized I was smiling, but I was in heaven there. The sun was shining, the seas were calm, and there was a light breeze. All was well with my world! We were out for a while before we headed back feeling great. John slid AfterMath back into her dock and we easily got her tied up and secured again. Our time out on the water made us both so anxious to get underway. Neither of us wanted to come back!

For those of you who are not from New England, you may not realize how rocky this area is. In Florida you would be hard pressed to find a rock in the ground, but in New England you would be hard pressed to dig a shovel full of soil and not hit a rock or a boulder! These pictures from today show a little bit of this rocky area.

We did finally get some news on the dinghy. The engine is now here from Texas and we should have it soon. We were disappointed because the dealer had promised to have the whole boat ready when the engine came in so they could just drop it on and hook it up. It seems they didn’t follow through on that promise, though, and the whole boat still needs to be assembled. John, using his best salesman tone, reminded the dealer of the arrangements we had made and they said work will be started tomorrow. Hopefully we will get it quickly because the boat yard has told us we have to be out of here by Memorial Day. We will be calling and stopping by the dinghy shop to keep after them and to keep them on task.

So, this weekend we will try to finish up the last of the supply shopping. We need to buy a grill and some headphones so we can talk to each other while docking (John can’t see me if I am on the stern and I can’t hear him when I am that far away). I am going to get serious about filling up the freezer and stocking up on paper goods and staples now that we are getting closer to leaving. The last big project will be selling my car. Thankfully, it’s a leased car so we have lots of options on how to get rid of it. That will be a big event in our lives!

We were sad to hear the news that my uncle passed away yesterday. He was my mother’s brother and the last of my parents’ generation. We will try to get to New Hampshire on Monday for the services. Uncle Bob was a great guy and he will be missed.

Remember to live each day to its fullest.  Tell someone you love them.  Be kind.  Every day is treasure.