7-24-11 Kathy, Terry visit, tiny houses, and reducing our footprint

It has been a busy and very fun last few weeks. My friend Kathy from Salt Lake came to visit me here in Dana for a week. She is a quick with a good pun, very smart, funny, active, overall a very wonderful and interesting lady. We have a huge amount in common, including hiking, camping, and sea kayaking, although she had not spent much time on a sailboat. She has been taking an active interest in “tiny houses”, homes as...

After wrapping up the rigging job, life here has been easy and idyllic. No massive projects to tackle again (yet…. The propane burner conversion and the galley cabinet remodel lurks to rise some day, but those are less critical tasks that may never get done) and warm summer breezes that I am sure inspired all those rumors of perfect sailing in Southern California. The town put on a huge July 4 show, with a fireworks barge anchored out in the bay where I usually camp out. In fact, the harb...

Up the mast.

I just today completed one of the most daunting projects ever on my boat. I replaced all the standing rigging, which is the thick steel cables that hold the mast up. This consists of a forestay, a backstay, and 3 shrouds on each side. Most experts suggest it be changed out about every 10 or 15 years, before it fails catastrophically and your mast falls down, tearing a big hole in your boat. Mine was maybe not original to the boat, but certainly very old, of unknown vintage, m...