Help for Haiti

I read today that more than 200,000 people are thought to have been killed in the earthquake in Haiti, and another 1.5 people million are homeless. It's impossible to sit here and not want to do something to help, so at work we've started a fundraising effort to have some quick impact and have also started brainstorming about other ways to help with the longer term needs. If anyone has any ideas about either approach please let me know. Everybody probably already knows how to donate money for the cause but I added a button for the Red Cross just in case.....

Kids and dogs

Change of command

Saturday was a sad day at the Crazy Cave, friends and neighbors....I rowed out to Reprieve for the last time that morning under a clear blue sky. I've known for a while now that with my move to Orlando there's just no way I would be able to give her the attention she needs. For the last several weeks I've been looking for a new skipper for her, preferrably someone who has kids and loves to sail but just doesn't have the means to get into a boat. With the limited time I'll have in the next three years I'll be spending time on Moon getting her ready for The Trip, and I just can't let Reprieve sit on her mooring without being there to do the maintenance she needs and keep her in good shape....which was made abundantly clear when I got out to her. The pirates had been there some time over the last two weeks, broken the hasp on the companionway, and looted her. They took the outboard, the VHF, the CD player, the batteries, and one of the solar panels. They made off with the portable depth finder and anemometer, the inverter, boat hook, tool boxes, compass, barometer, clock, light fixtures, life jackets, charts, dishes, food, and rum. Damn it they took the rum! They also took a couple of changes of clothes I had stashed in the hanging locker and all the back issues of Latitudes & Attitudes magazine. And left beer cans and cigarrette butts in the cockpit. It hurts, man. It really hurts. It's bad enough that I'm letting her go to someone else, which, corny as it sounds, feels almost like I'm betraying her (although she's going to a good man). But for her to have been violated like this in the last days that she was in my care, after as much fun and escape as she had provided me, just ain't right. I'm not normally one to wish ill to anyone else, but I hope those bastards get drunk on that rum and fall down go boom. They did leave the sals, though. And two anchors and all of the sheets & halyards and the tiller. She still sails! And the man who's taking over her care and command is a good guy, a lifelong Keys person who will enjoy her and take care of her. I'm sure he and his kids will have many adventures on her, and she'll take good care of them along the way like she did for me. It was hard to leave her and row back to shore, but as I watched her shrinking in the distance behind me I remembered the many great sailing days, peaceful nights on the hook out in the bay, and calm afternoons sitting in the cockpit with a book or just daydreaming over the rail.....

Here's a memory, one of many, of sailing her on the bay...it was a beautiful day with winds pushing 20 knots. I had spent the night at Nest Key and was on my way back to the anchorage. She was running free, a reef in the main and the skinny jib on the forestay, perfectly balanced and holding her course like she new the way home.

Fair winds little friend.

Not all who wander.....

Where does the time go, kids? Sitting on the back deck this evening, listening to the boats running out on the sound and the breeze moving through the palms, I reflected back on June 1, 2004, the day I landed here in the Keys from Denver to start work on the new hospital. Tonight that day seems like a lifetime away. A lot of water has passed under the keel since then, so to speak...several new kids in the family, some good old friends gone, lots of new friends to cherish, and so many memories of so many good times had - hanging out under the thatch roof at the tiki bar or under the bimini on the boat, sipping cold beer while the rain comes in or the sun goes down, scarfing fish tacos on the dock at Calypsos, sailing across the startlingly clear waters out beyond the reef, digging up pirate treasure on deserted islands in the bay, scaring up iguanas in the mangrove jungles, watching the new hospital rise up out of that old potato field, to sample just a few.......

December 2, 2005 I started this little on-line open letter to my friends and family as a way to share a narrative of my experiences and practice my writing skills. Thanks to those of you who have taken the time to read what I've put down here, and thanks especially to those of you who have given me your feedback on what you've thought was well done and what was crap. Living here in my little island paradise and having an interesting and challenging job has provided lots of subject matter for the blog, and quite honestly the bigdogblog has only captured a very small fraction of the experiences and adventures I've enjoyed in my time here. Looking back I know there were a lot of cool things going on here that I completely missed out on...running naked with the crazies on Duval Street during Fantasy Fest, witnessing the spectacle that is the Columbus Day Regatta, sailing with the conchs in the Christmas boat parade, for example.....

And now it's time to pack up and head out for a new town, a new job, new adventures.

I've been commuting to Orlando for a couple of months now, tending to the start of the new job there while tying up loose ends down here, but it has finally gotten to the point where I need to suck it up, make the move north, and get settled in to the new routine that awaits me there. No doubt I've been dragging my feet for a while on this, stalling and hoping that some miracle would happen and I'd find a way to be able to stay here forever while I finish getting Moon ready for the Trip. But employment opportunities here are scarce, particularly for folks with as limited a marketable skill set as I have (not many new hospitals get built in sleepy little island towns, dadgummit!).

Part of my stall maneuver includes getting some work done on Everlasting Moon while I have access to a yard I can trust to get her prepped for her eventual move north. Earlier this week a friend and I sailed her on a broad reach the twenty miles or so down the Hawk Channel south to Islamorada with 15-20 knots of wind out of the east and 2-3 foot swells moving in from the reef. It was a glorious day to be on the water - spitting rain early, some brief squalls mid-morning, and clearing to blue skies with a freshening breeze that encouraged us to put a reef in the main before noon. And for added enjoyment, I forgot to put a stopper knot on the jib sheet when we set sail, so when we got to the Snake Creek channel and cranked up the engine and turned back into the breeze to take the sails down to transit the channel under the drawbridge, the free end of the sheet escaped the lead block on the toe rail and tangled itself in the prop, jamming the works and killing the engine. After a few moments of what the hell we realized what had happened, dropped the anchor to keep from getting blown onto the shoals at the mouth of the channel, and studied on what to do next. It didn't take long to understand that we had two choices - call Sea Tow and get towed in to the marina or jump my skinny ass over the side with a mask and a knife and free the prop. Opting for undersea adventure instead of the indignity of having to call for help I hopped into the ocean. Luckily my friend had the presence of mind to suggest that we cut the jib sheet loose above the water line and spare me the excitement of flailing around in the water with a sharp knife in my hand while the barnacle encrusted 11,000 pound boat pitched around in the swell above my head. That was smart thinking, and it still left me with the thrill of swimming under the boat as it rose and fell on the waves while I unwrapped the line from the prop shaft. It took a while to get it done, but after figuring out how to brace myself on the bottom of the boat so that I was going up and down with it the actual freeing of the line wasn't that hard.

Once I got back on the boat I realized that this is exactly why I love being on the water in general and sailing in particular.....every now and then you're going to be confronted with one of these little puzzles that can only be solved with the right combination of skill, knowledge, luck, and physical exertion.

The rest of the sail was memorable but uneventful. The engine started back first try, we cleared the bridge, motored through the channel and into the bay where we picked the same breeze we had on the ocean side. With no swell to fight on the bay side Moon ran with a bone in her teeth the last few miles to the marina. We even got tied up to the dock there with no real excitement.

Today we got the mast and lifelines off, and prep work started for the new standing rigging and refit of the masthead lights and antenna. She comes out of the water Monday for bottom paint and a new stuffing box, cutlass bearing, and repair of whatever else we find under there that needs fixing.



If all goes as planned, she'll go back in the water a week from Monday, and I can sail her back up to her slip the next day before heading to Elkin for the annual family Thanksgiving gala......

I remember riding my bike down the Cherry Creek trail in Denver to the park at the confluence of Cherry Creek and the Platte River in May of 2004, and watching the colliding streams while I studied over my impending departure from the life I had started building there....it had been hard to decide to pack up and leave there just as I was developing a new circle of friends and really getting to know the miles of mountain bike trails and the brew pubs, bookstores, neighborhood hangouts and just plain good and friendly people that make Denver such an inviting place to live. But I did make that decision, opting for the uncertainty of a new place with a solid job and a chance to build something really meaningful over staying put in an awesome place but not knowing what I would do for a living. Things turned out well enough, I think, going the route that I did.

And here I am now at another watershed moment. This time around, though, I'm leaving with more details and a more definitive timeline added to the plan I left Denver with.....work hard, save money, buy a boat, and take off to chase the horizon as soon as possible. It hurts to know that I'm leaving a place that has really come to feel like home, though....hurts more than I can express. But.....

The job in Orlando is going to be a great one. A lot of work, of course, and I'll go ahead an apologize now for all of the bitchin' and moanin' about the job that you're likely to read here over the next three years or so. It's OK to tell me to be quiet about all of that when I get out of line. And I know that there are good people that I'll meet there, and good adventures to be had exploring and getting to know the Orlando area again

So, that's it for now. I hope that you're doing well, that all of the decisions you're faced with are easy or you enjoy puzzling out the answers to the hard ones.....Good night, friends. Be well.

Stream

Last weekend our marina community was frantically securing boats in preparation for a possible visit from Hurricane Ike.....this weekend we watched in pain as our neighbors in Texas faced the full force of the storm, and we searched the TV for small victories behind the weather channel reporters...the boat still at anchor in a storm tossed harbor, the sloop in the flooded parking lot with its rigging intact, boats upright on the hard in a debris-strewn marina.....

Four days ago it looked like I'd be able to stay here in the Keys through Christmas....three days ago the depositions were rescheduled and now it looks like I'll be out of here and in Orlando by Halloween....

I went sailing with a friend on Moon recently, the hull scattering crisp white sheets of foam across the tops of the swells as we slipped along over and under the crystal blue, and she told me it was fun to be sailing on a small boat for a change....

Blood on the highway has an unreal but unmistakable color, like fluid spilled from a leaky transmission, only transmission fluid soaks into the pavement a whole lot faster....

Iggy the Iguana, a ancient but healthy five-footer with an impressive beard, perched himself high on a mangrove limb and watched with obvious amusement as I clambered through the tangle, wrapping chain around the trunks and prop roots to secure our boats to the only really secure part of our little island home....

We went sailing on my friend's boat today and now I understand what she meant about the difference between a big boat and a small one.....She Breeze soaked up the ocean swells with an easy grace and massive patience....

We put the initial budget together for the new job last week....hundreds of millions of dollars that right now are just numbers on a page, numbers that will soon be transformed into three years of sweat and dust and then, in a day, when the first kid walks in for help, a hospital.....

A person can be entirely oblivious to the effects of a lifetime of unfortunate choices and hard circumstances until one day when a chance encounter reveals a beautiful bright world of previously unknown possibilities. Give someone you don't know some Wendell Berry or Sharon Olds, and don't look back to see what happens. You probably don't want to get involved.

Katy's snoring on the couch....I've got to leave the house at 3 am for a 6 am flight out of Ft. Lauderdale in the morning, and she's the one sleeping. Learn to learn from the good examples in your life, brothers and sisters, because they are all around out there...we just take need to take the time to look.

I love you. Good night.

Storms & Excitement

Wow - it has been a fun and exciting couple of weeks here with the turbulent tropical weather we've had, and although it looks like we may get some more excitement the next few days we're likely to dodge the bullet again...Fay and Hanna gave the upper keys a glancing blow, and Ike's probably going to stay well south of our little island home as well, which is good for us but really bad news for the poor folks down in Cuba. I hope the mountains there knock the energy out of it and they are spared a full hit. Here in Key Largo the forecast is for tropical storm force winds Tuesday and Wednesday and a 2-4 foot surge if Ike stays on the projected track. We've gotten the boats in the marina secured as well as we can....thanks in large part to the patience and expertise of the seasoned members of the marina community. I'm leaving everyone here to ride out the storm, and heading out for Orlando tomorrow with Katy because I've got meetings there all week (work, work, work, work, work.....). It sucks to have to leave.

I'll check in later after the storm's passed with pictures and stories from the tie-up process.....

The August update

Hey kids....long time no post, I know, but in my defense it is summer, after all, and I've been busy and lord knows this blog ain't never been known for the regularity of its updates. So, all that being said, what a summer it's been!


First there was the trip with Dad and Judy on the new boat ,then the annual Spellman retreat at Niobrara where, in addition to the great conversation, cold beverages, good food, and tranquil scenerey, thanks in great measure to Connie and Rick's extreme grace and tolerant natures I got the opportunity to nurture my inner child for a couple of days playing with Ms. Teagan and running around and cruising the dirt roads on the scooter with Roan and cousin Max (you guys ROCK!)

Next came a chance to hook up with Jim 'n Deb while they had a long layover at MIA on their way back home from vacationing in Peru (thanks for the stories and the salsa tamarindo!), and then a couple of days swimming, sailing, eating, running, and riding bikes with Roan and Pat when they came down to the Crazy Cave. And to top it all off I was able to play hooky from work last Monday and go play in the rain and ride out trop storm Fay on the boat with a friend.

All of this is very cool stuff for an old knucklehead, brothers and sisters, very cool stuff. Thanks to all of you for all the memories!

And.....although I didn't take many pictures of these events, I'll follow up later with a link to the Flickr site where I've uploaded a few shots.


See you next time.......

Piccata

Wow.....I had dinner last night with a friend....a beautiful, warm, bright, and funny woman I've known for a while from a safe distance...and, although it took a while for the butterflies in my stomach to settle down, it was rejuvenating to have fun with someone in the kitchen again. We laughed our way through making a piccata with shrimp and scallops, and enjoyed it with a nice green salad, some roasted asparagus, a few glasses of wine, and some lively and engaging conversation.

Life is good, brothers and sisters, life is good. Carry on!

etc., etc.

It's summer time in the Keys again, boys and girls, which means that people are drunk and people are screaming.....and the crabs are on the move again....I woke up yesterday morning to two big mommas trying to get out (yes, OUT, that ain't a typo) through the sliding glass door and one trying to get in....saw several in the yard this morning, and Katy scared one out of the grass in the neighbor's yard while we were walking a little while ago.

And, in other news, Zeke recently posted some photos from the wedding and honeymoon cruise.....here's a link....it's hard to capture the feel of an event like a wedding but these snapshots do a good job of telling the story.

Katy and I spent the weekend putzing around on Moon, putting in a new battery charger, swapping out one of the old bilge pumps for a new one with an automatic float switch and rigging it with a hot lead from the battery so that if the bilge fills with water it'll come on whether or not the breaker panel is turned on, and scrubbing the gel coat and polishing what turns out to be several miles of stainless tubing on the bimini frame, lifeline stanchions, stern and bow pulpits, swim ladder, etc. etc. etc. Like I said before, it's summer all of a sudden here, and between the sweat and the skinned knuckles I must have lost about ten pounds.

The marina that Moon is in now is a really Keys-ey place.....there are some pirate types that live in an asssortment of mostly derelict fishing boats on the west end of the cove, there's an underwater hotel up by the entrance, and a not-for-profit organization maintains and rents the slips in the middle to help fund their let's teach kids about marine biology program. There are also a couple of really good people that live on their boats there - a Sea Tow skipper and his wife and kids live on a houseboat directly across the floating dock from me, and a diving instructor lives on her Morgan Out Island 41 at the end of the pier. And there are several weekenders like me......and everybody there seems to have a great sense of humor, which is something that came in handy when I was trying to dock Moon the first time...Moon doesn't back up very well ( the guy I bought her from said "she backs up like a drunk elephant" and after trying to back her into her slip I know what he means!). The Sea Tow skipper ended up having to crank up his rescue boat and push me into the slip, with the entire marina crowd looking on, of course - after I fouled the mooring line on the adjacent boat but before I rammed into the fifty-footer tied up in the slip next to mine. That boat is a whole 'nother story....folks in the marina have a pool going as to when it's gonna sink (it's literally held together with baling wire, twenty-year old caulk, and a colony of termites that are all holding hands) - apparently I would have made somebody's weekend if I had rammed it and sent it to the bottom.
On the bright side, the entrance canal to the marina is very narrow, and although in places there was less than a foot to spare on either side we didn't scrape any paint of the boats along the way coming in. I can't wait to try that with a stiff crosswind!

I also spent some time refining the "to do" list for Moon today, moving the rebuild of the head to the top of the list and also adding checking out a nasty stress crack in the fiberglass around the backstay chainplate....

And, I got the guitar out and played for a while last night for the first time in a looonggg while - thanks for kickin' down the Big Daddy Love CD, bro - it's inspirational!

So, all in all, this was a fine weekend, and I'm feeling rested, ready and refreshed for another fun-filled week at work.

And speaking of the work front, it looks like I am gonna do one more project before heading out on The Trip, and it's not going to be the Nursing School project I've been sort of half-heartedly looking after for the last couple of months - we recently got the contract on a children's hospital in Orlando that should be interesting and a worthwhile way to make a living while I get Moon ready for The Cruise.....here's a link to a brief story about the project. This is an interesting job and I'm excited about the prospects, but it'll last about four years, which is two years longer than I wanted to have to wait before heading out........

But, it's bedtime now, and there'll be plenty of time later for studying on what to do about work and boats and such. So, good night, kids, and sweet dreams.

The Honeymooners

So....for those who don't already know the big news, Zeke and Judy tied the knot in a beautiful ceremony at the UU Fellowship in Auburn a little over a week ago, and came down here afterward for a bit of a honeymoon cruise on Everlasting Moon. We took three days to bring the boat from Boynton Beach down here to Key Largo and had an awesome time....we motored down the intracoastal waterway through Ft. Lauderdale and got to see all the oh my god mansions and good lord amighty yachts along the way, got the snot beat out of us by 4-6 foot seas when we went out into the Atlantic at Port Everglades, spent a night anchored in Biscayne Bay with the Miami skyline backstopping a beautiful starry night, sailed a glorious broad reach out of the Bay and back into the deep blue sea......I wish you all could have been there.

Here are a couple of pics from the trip....


Judy making a sandwich while we're sailing through the Bay...



At Crandon Marina on Key Biscayne...

And here's Cap'n Zeke checking out the proceedings.

It's getting late now, so I've gotta scoot, but there will be more photos and stories to follow.

Good night and fair winds, friends.