Category Archives: FAQs

How to *not* live on your boat

Posted on by
Reply
1-IMG_3382

Mobile Meth Lab? Nope! It’s Mother Jones, prepped for storage. FYI – it’s real hard to take non-blurry, low-light photos on a boat, even in a calm slip

After 4,000nm and 2 years out of the US, we’re back in our home state of Texas. After an exhaustive search into the safest possible place to store Mother Jones on the Texas coast while we work (200 miles away) in Austin during hurricane season, we are super happy she is tucked away in her new home – 3 miles up a winding waterway, behind a 60 foot flood gate on a floating dock- at the Freeport Municipal Marina.

And, tucked away she is!

It’s actually a ton of work to properly prep a boat for storage – and even more work to prep a boat for an oncoming storm. It’s something commuter cruisers do every season before they leave their boat for whatever their commuting to. But, fortunately we never had to do it, before now.

Luckily, the good folks over at Windtraveler and Zero to Cruising each published lists of what they do to “de-commission” their boats. This gave us a HUGE head start on our boat storage prep (thanks, y’all!). Of course, every boat and its conditions is different (their boats are both on the hard and out of the hurricane zone). So, I used their info as a guide to create this this master list of “how to prepare Mother Jones for storage and storms”.

who me? merge a bunch of lists into one giant, coded spreadsheet? yes. what can I say, it’s a gift.

You might be wondering “do you really have to do all this stuff?”. Maybe, maybe not. What you “have to” do depends on you, your boat, your climate and what condition you like to keep your boat in. We’ve decided to take a fairly comprehensive, conservative approach to storing Mother Jones given our boat (aka our home) is in a new environment, in the hurricane zone and we’re not around to check on her on a daily basis (we do visit every few weeks for a long weekend as a pre-caution* and as a retreat).

It’s worth noting we’ve opted to use damp-rid instead of using an electric de-humidifier because I’m more afraid of fire than I am of mold. And, instead of hauling stuff back and forth on our weekend trips, we’ve elected to keep a small amount cooking of staples onboard the boat (olive oil, spices, popcorn, etc) which could tempt pests and science-experiments.

Finally, while I once thought we’d prep Mother Jones like a Cat-5 storm was rolling in tomorrow (because I like to “set it and forget it”), we smart’d up and realized this isn’t necessary, it’s a lot of extra work for a “just in case” scenario and getting all that extra line, etc is expensive! So, in terms of everything extra we’d need to do prep the boat for a major storm, we figure we’ll just cross that bridge if and when we come to it.

of course, I did include and code those items on the master list “just in case”

Speaking of which, “just in case” you’ve got any items for the master list we should be considering or tips for using your boat as a commuter cruiser vs. a live-aboard, please do get in touch!

*Sure, Mother Jones is probably fine on her own. But, things change and break on boats. While living aboard does add wear to systems, it also provides an awesome opportunity to notice when small things are leaking/rusting/problematic before they become a BIG problem (if you’re around, you’ll notice “it” needs work). think: a small leak onto a mattress, which flows unchecked, in a closed up boat when it’s 100 degrees outside with 90% humidity for 2+ weeks before you’re around to notice. or worse . . . That’s a huge reason we prepped this well and come check on her. Plus, we love running to the coast and hanging on her every chance we get!

Ex-Expat 1st impressions

Posted on by
5

Well, it’s been two weeks.

We have settled are settling in. We have phones, we have jobs, we set alarms and pack lunches. We throw things in the dryer and take showers inside.

Things are familiar and strange all at once.

People keep asking how it feels to be back. I keep answering “I don’t know, ask me in a month”.

So, maybe I should wait a few more weeks and write this post then???

nah, I’ve never been one to practice patience. So, here goes some 1st impressions:

  • people are awesome! We are so blessed with and grateful for amazing people in our lives. It is so good to see you – and the little people some of you have made while we were gone (they.are.talking.now – whoa). Also, we are completely blown away by the generosity of our community. Y’all have pitched in to make our transition all that easier: just the other day, I was talking on a phone loaned to me, while sitting in a car loaned to me, with all new-to-me clothes on my body – including a “city bra” (aka not a swimsuit) and some undies (they were actually new but still gifted).
  • people are (too?) awesome On the flip side (diamond.shoes.too.tight), I had a total meltdown the first weekend in town because I was trying to figure out how to see EVERYONE ASAP with the annoying limit of the # of waking hours in the day. So, I “compromised” and stopped sleeping, basically. That was no bueno. My mood – and my social skills — suffered. I was told, kindly, that perhaps after a few years in the wild, I ought to domesticate myself a bit. My oldest, bestest friend totally busted me, “I can feel you being busy from my house”. And, then, I yelled “I AM NICE!” at my sister. Yup. It was clearly time for a break(down). No biggie. I knew this breakdown was coming. And, come it did. Once I admitted the challenges and limits I was facing, it was actually kinda funny. Perhaps it’s the way we’ve been living (9pm is known as “cruisers midnight”) or just a simple fact of getting older. Turns out I prefer my slow-pokey life of going to bed before 10pm to my old life in Austin of going out at 10pm. I’d rather visit with you in the outdoors for a walk’n’talk or swim and be able to hear what you’ve been up to than pound shots at a smoky bar. Perhaps placing quality over quantity has it’s downside: our visits may take longer to schedule or be fewer and far-betweener. But, not “squeezing in” my time with you, awesome person, is a risk I’m willing to take – and I hope you’ll understand and perhaps prefer it this way, too.
  • work is fun! aside from the awesome opportunity to hang with friends and family in Austin, we are also refilling our cruising kitty. Both of us have the good fortune to work with Fantastic Fest – where they actually pay us to create an amazing festival with super-talented and creative people. You know that cliché, “do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life”? Well, there’s a reason people say it. And, bonus, we made the first DEPOSIT in our bank account in a very long time. That was fun!
  • Kemah is just fine. You might just be checking in because you want to know how everyone’s favorite Mother Jones crew member is doing. Well, Kemah is fine. He took everything in on his first car ride in two years from Freeport to Austin (squirrel! cow! train!). He has been loving going on walks (but I think he does miss swimming). He does have a bit of separation challenges but luckily, he loves hanging out with his Grandparents when we are out and about. Also, he had a super funny adjustment experience his first morning: in bed at about 8am, in Austin, we pulled the sheets off his face and he looked around, wild-eyed, at the walls and ceiling (!) in our bedroom. he had a look on his face like a college student the morning after a tequila binge that said “where am I? how’d I get here? and who am I in bed with?”. Luckily, he seemed to piece it together. And, that’s been the worst of his adjustments (so far, so good!).
  • walking distance is totally relative, car culture rules & it’s just automatic: I immediately noticed upon arrival that Freeport, Texas is the 1st port we’ve been in since leaving the States that didn’t have normal living stuff* in walking distance or cabs readily available to whisk you away to the local market or chandlery. We tried walking the .5 mile to the local hardware store but were stopped by our dock mate who kindly insisted upon giving us a ride. When we went to close the back hatch on his SUV, he was careful to instruct us not to do it by hand or we’d break it – umm, okay. You just push a button, of course. (because that’s totally natural) *speaking of what’s totally natural, the only thing in walking distance from our marina is the Dollar General & the “by donation” bar. Think it’s any coincidence that the cheapest, booziest spots in town are the closest thing to the saltiest, live-aboard dock (our dock) in town???
  • also relative? humidity. It feels soooo dry to us (like 3 extra ooo’s dry). Like fish out of water – we’re gonna drown from the lack of water in the air dry. But, I get that other people don’t feel this way – ’cause they haven’t had as much practice wearing a sweat-suit in the sopa that is Central America. I’m enjoying wearing my hair down, going on pleasant walks in the middle of the day and feeling the difference between standing in the sun vs. standing in the shade (there’s a difference!). Also, I’ve answered the question of “why do I have all this lotion on the boat!?!”. So, that’s a bonus.
  • also relative? problems. I know, I know: every person’s problems are unique and real. But, they’re also relative. And, I’ve been noticing some “problems” – big and small – I haven’t been exposed to in a while. Like traffic (while sitting in a car). Like how people have so much (new) stuff but complain about the mess, debt and waste. Like how you can drink the water out of the tap – but people complain about the chlorine they don’t want in it. Like how we were told “the government takes all your money here!” by someone who went to a public school, while we all stood inside a store built to code, alongside a decent road, with regular garbage service and a fire department that will come if you’re in need . . . hmmm.
  • shoes are for the birds! actually, that makes no sense whatsoever. Which is coincidentally how I feel about straightjackets for feet, which is what every store seems to sell. On a related note, apparently going barefoot for two years has made my feet really, really strong aka really, really wide. Like, I had them measured and they are measuring between a wide and DOUBLEWIDE. Lord help me.
  • we’re not anonymous any more. part of the fun of being away from home is discovering new places and people without any pre-conceived notions. In other words, things are new – and so are you! While travelling, it’s super rare and super weird to hear your name called out from down the street – after all, no one knows it. But, just two weeks back in Austin I’ve actually had a couple situations where I’ve heard my name called out from a passing car or from across a room. That’s new – and fun. And, cause for me to wear more mascara and stop picking my nose in public 😉
  • old patterns are still there. here’s a fun fact about me: I can’t sleep at night unless the closet doors in my bedroom are closed. I forgot that until I slept in a bedroom (not cabin) again. That is the tip of the Old Patterns Iceberg.
  • we are so fortunate and so grateful. my mama always said there’s a difference between being lucky and being fortunate, as in luck is random and fortune implies choice (+ luck?). I’d say she’s right (because she is most certainly reading this). We are so lucky that we have the opportunity to live the life we do: everyone in our family (including us) is in good health and supportive of what we do. In contrast, we know folks that would love to take off into the wild blue yonder but have family obligations (which they are lovingly providing) which keep them from starting – or staying – out. I also consider us to be very fortunate: we have worked hard to stretch our luck and right wrong choices (like racking up debt or yelling at sisters). We think and (try to act) creatively about how we want to design our life. Also, given our experiences (which haven’t all been good) we choose to bring a sense of adventure, optimism and play to our lives. This has made our time “out there” as opposed to “at home” not “opposed” but rather chapters in the same book. At least, that’s how I feel right now (on our boat, on a weekend away from Austin, while writing this) . . .

Thanks for hanging in there with us while we bumble around in and out of Austin, on and off the seas. I’m looking forward to keeping up with our “So Many Beaches” blog, even if we’re not so close to the coast. Y’all in?

Kemah’s Korner!

Posted on by
2

12-IMG_0764

In case you missed it on our Facebook or Twitter pages, this little blog got a whole new section featuring a whole lotta FAQs answered about living with a sweet, salty dog aboard:

It’s Kemah’s Korner, y’all!

And, it’s awesome (if I do say so ma’self).

So far, info about Kemah’s life aboard S/V Mother Jones has been featured on The Monkey’s Fist. *AND*, based on yesterday’s post, Kemah’s been invited to join a spread of cruising dogs in Practical Sailor magazine’s upcoming issue (I’ll post that once it’s up in a few weeks).

Exciting, huh!?!

**update: Kemah’s a centerfold! Check out Practical Sailor’s article on “Canine Crew” (featuring Mr. K) here.**

IMG-20130802-00020

all the exposure from his debut made someone a little bashful

Kemah’s Korner: a dog’s life aboard

5

Rrrrr-ello!

And, welcome to Kemah’s Korner!

A lot of folks have questions about what it’s like to have a dog on board. Well, all you curious cats, here are some answers to the questions we hear most, straight from Mr. Kemah to you (through a human filter – that’s us!).

Kemah's-Corner

Professor Kemah is ready to answer all of your tough questions

Click on any of the links below to learn more about the following:

Can’t get enough of Mr. Kemah & his big, lazy adventures? We understand. You can check out pics from some more of his land-based shenanigans by clicking here.

If you have further questions, feel free to ask ’em in the comments or get in touch in whatever way works best for you. Kemah is standing by.409177_3084832883951_232944725_n Also, in case you’re interested in seeing more dogs on boats and hearing about their adventures, you can head on over to the Monkey’s Fist. Simply click on the graphic below to read others bloggers on this topic.

The Monkey's Fist

Coming to America, Part 2

Posted on by
6
coming to america Part 2

notice that purty boat in the poster now!

Remember last week when we made a big ol’ announcement about the S/V Mother Jones crew coming home to Texas for the summer (aka hurricane season)? ‘Member how that update included lists about stuff we did and did not have “figured out”? And, finally, might you remember how the following info about the boat was neatly bullet-ed in the “figured out” list:

“S/V Mother Jones is staying in Isla Mujeres, in a marina, in the inner lagoon for the 90 days we’re not with her (which also happens to be 90 days of hurricane season, dun, dun, DUN)”

Well, you can just scratch that off the “figured out” list! (shocker: I did that in the old post ’cause I’m OCD like that)

After talking to some super-duper-smart people for the last week or so here in Isla and doing a TON of online research and outreach, we got to thinking seriously about other options. Namely, the option we’re leaning towards now: bringing MJ back to Texas, hauling her out* and putting her on the nicest patch of solid, “high” ground we can find along the TX coast. *Instead of hauling out, we have considered leaving her on a floating dock with 10’+ pilings – out of the way of other boats??? Suffice it to say, our jury (of two) is still out on this one.

If you’re a land-lubbing friend of ours back in ATX, you might read this update and think, “Cool, maybe I’ll get to see the boat”. Feel free to stop reading now 🙂 But, if you’re a sailor – especially one who is trying to find out what to do with your boat for hurricane season – you might be interested to know the nitty-gritty of how we arrived at our decision to change course 180 degrees from leaving our boat here in Isla to  setting sail over 700 miles of the Gulf and bringing her home.

Still reading? OK, get ready for some nitty-gritty sailor dork out time. In the spirit of continuing (my) education and paying it forward, I’m gonna use this post as an opportunity to resurrect the algebra student in me and “show my work”.

***Full disclaimer: I’m just diving into all of this stuff, learning as much as I can, as fast as we can (Hurricane Season officially started June 1st, you know, 4 days ago . . .).***

I hope to add to this list as I learn more and I hope you’ll help me correct any of my assumptions if I should know better. Afterall, we don’t know what we don’t know, right? Consider this your open invitation for solicited advice. All that being said, here’s the deal y’all:

  • We’ll be working in Austin July-October.
  • We are not planning on sailing the boat during this time.
  • Bringing the boat back to Texas would allow us to check on her easier (than in Mexico, or the Rio), would allow easier transport of the dog (yay, K is coming home, too!) and allow us to have easy access to any items we have aboard that we want in Austin.
  • While we’re not that keen on cruising the Texas coast after years of gin-clear water and almost zero regulations (Why hello there, TPWD, tax office, marinas that require insurance, etc), we aren’t quite sure what we want to do next.
  • Another thing we do know is that we will need a bottom job within the next year, requiring a haul-out.

So, considering all that, having MJ close by in Texas, totally stripped and strapped down in an affordable yard seems like the best fit for us. (as of this writing) “Great! But, isn’t Texas in the Hurricane Zone? Where will you leave MJ and what will you do to prep her? Do you have to pay taxes and register MJ in Texas? Isn’t crossing the Gulf, like, a big deal?” Wow. Those are a lot of totally great questions. It’s like you read my mind or something . . . Here goes some answer ‘splaining to those questions: Do you have to pay taxes and register MJ in Texas?

  • Yes. (arrg, Ben Franklin!; dead for 200 years, still right)
  • Even though she is documented with the US Coast Guard, we will still have to pay to register her in Texas and we have to pay a boat sales & use tax.  
  • Why do we have to pay? When we bought MJ in Florida, we were never required to pay sales tax on her or register her in any state because we left Florida – and the US – within 90 days. So, now that she is being registered in TX (a US state with sales tax) we have to pay. 
  • How much, to whom and by when? Well that depends on our bill of sale and how soon we pay it. Apparently, there is a 90 day grace registration to pay the $110 state registration, 20 working days to show taxes paid (rate is 6.25%). If we’re delinquent on any of that stuff we’d accrue penalties & interest of 5% of the tax within 30 days, 10% within 60 days + interest at a rate of 1%. Confusing? Yes. But, luckily, TPWD makes it easy to show how much you potentially owe them through this handy-dandy tax calculator. Ain’t that sweet of them?
  • I’m still not sure on where we pay our taxes – county of residence or county of the boat. So, stay tuned on that piece . . .
  • It’ll end up being around $3K, which is a lot to us. But, it’s way less than what could potentially happen if we left her unattended without easy access to check on her (Mexico, the Rio, etc) during hurricane season (and beyond?).
  • And, what about insurance? That’s a great question, too. We haven’t had it since we left The Bahamas over a year ago. We haven’t met a ton of sailors who have it outside the US. But, it seems lots of US marinas require liability and insurance in a hurricane zone does seems like a good idea, so we’ll see . . . (cue your recs here)

Should we haul out or keep her in the water? Great question! There’s a ton of debate on this. And, from what I can tell the answer is a simple, two-parter: “I dunno.” and “It depends.” Here’s what I can tell:

  • In the water: Boats do great in the water on floating docks with pilings taller than the expected surge unless another boat in your area breaks free and starts to play Smash Boat with every boat in it’s path.
  • On land (also called dry storage): Boats hauled out on solid, high ground, secured with tie downs on braces also do well. Trouble is, it can be tough to find hard, high ground at sea-level. And, boats on weak stilts, in mushy ground can topple over like dominoes or become aloft (especially cats) if they’re not strapped down properly.

BTW – I’ve attempted to examine maps of Texas for “hard, high ground” with mixed results. Exhibit A:

What fun! We’re still debating these possibilities but leaning towards hauling out because 1) I hope whatever yard we chose will be hard and high enough so boats won’t topple over 2) she’ll be ready to be worked on when we’re ready to do the bottom 3) we won’t be using her anyway 4) I think it’s cheaper than keeping her in a slip. So, now there’s just the small matter of where to put the boat:

  • We’ve “narrowed” it down to the 250 miles of Texas Coast north of Corpus, south of Galveston. Ha!
  • Because we’re not going to be using her and all towns are basically equidistant from Austin, my main concern is the safest place for the boat (as opposed to the city with the best Thai food).
  • It seems to me that the Kemah/Clear Lake area has a ton of resources for boaters, including some great marinas with floating docks. It also seems geared towards recreational boaters (not live-aboard sailors) with bigger, deeper pockets than ours. We keep hearing great things about Waterford Marina, which could be a good choice if we leave her in the water.
  • On the flip side, the Matagorda Bay area (Port A, Port Lavaca, Rockport, etc) seems a little saltier. Which is to say, I think there are more blue-collar fisherman, live-aboards and sailors down that way. I could be wrong, but I’d expect it to be cheaper than the Kemah/Clear Lake area. Plus, I really like it’s position on this crystal-ball of a map:
2013gulf

As opposed to the red of Isla Mujeres, I like that little patch of yellow south of Galveston a lot. – “Risk Maps for The 2013 Hurricane Season” courtesy of Crown Weather

In short, we’ve got a lot of ground to cover in terms of researching how (dry or wet storage) and where to store our beloved MJ while we’re away.

Because you know I love maps, below is one I created to help me visualize our options. Of course, my type-A me has organized the pins in order of most-least favored. Feel free to view the notes/send me yours if you have any corrections.


View Marinas & yards Texas in a larger map

As of now (6/7/2013), I’m particularly impressed by Freeport, Texas. I mean, look at these floodgates:

FreeportTexasBrazosRiverFloodGate72207KRudine

Image courtesy of Texas Escapes

In terms of how to prep the boat, that’s a ton of work, too. But, luckily, there are some awesome cruisers and public and private entities who have already detailed this stuff (so you and I don’t have to).Here’s some of those resources, which have been helpful to me in explaining “it’s not the wind, it’s the waves” and other stuff you need to know:

  • This great video from West Marine:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-Dj5de79Jo]

We will be utilizing a combo of all of these recommendations and tips to prepare MJ for the Big (hopefully uneventful) Sleep. Some other resources I thought worth mentioning include:

  • Crown Weather’s awesome, in-depth, for-dummies (like me, not you SmartyPants) anaylsis of the 2013 Atlantic Hurricane Season
  • The amazing community at Women Who Sail. If you are a woman who sails or have one aboard, I recommend you join this awesome community.
  • The super helpful folks at the Texas Mariner’s Cruising Association took the time to write me back a detailed response full of local knowledge and they connected me with an awesome former cruiser. This cruiser has been super generous with his time – he even gave us his home phone and expects us to let him know when we’re coming so he can look for us coming in and show us around. ~swoon~

Pfew! Thanks for hanging in there y’all!

Believe me, if I weren’t in our (literal) boat, I’da stopped reading a looong time ago (right about after that funny pic of Eddie Murphy with my head on it).

But, I am in our (literal) boat. And, maybe you are, too. (hey! get out of our boat, stowaway!)

For searious, if you are reading this and, like me, working out hurricane season algebra, I hope one word of this is helpful to you; writing it all out sure is helpful to me. And, finally, just one more plug for solicited advice . . . if I got anything wrong or should consider something else, please don’t be shy, drop us a line in the comments section so we all can learn from you. THANK YOU!

-the girl with an amazing intact boat come November

ps. If you’re wondering, because of the header picture, if Alf and Angela Lansbury are coming back to Texas with us, I wish! For now-zies, it’s merely a pipe dream of Capt. D, who is coincidentally head of our graphic design dept, and whose motto is “if I build it, they will come”.

Coming to America

Posted on by
Reply

MJ coming to america

Yup! D&L are headed home for the summer!

aka “will work for sailing adventures”

We’re excited to join the Fantastic Fest team in producing yet another awesome week of scary-weird films and great events. Because the old Festival stomping grounds on South Lamar are still stomped, the new, temporary location for this year’s Fest will be held at the Lakeline location. Festival dates are September 19-26th.

“But, what about the boat? The dog? Where will you live? How will you get around? When can we hang out? Can I buy you lunch? What about after October?”

Yep, we have those questions, too. And, here are *some* answers:

What we’ve figured out so far:

  • D&L are headed back to Austin mid-July through mid-October, with a likely trip to central California sprinkled somewheres in there
  • S/V Mother Jones is staying in Isla Mujeres, in a marina, in the inner lagoon for the 90 days we’re not with her (which also happens to be 90 days of hurricane season, dun, dun, DUN)
  • We will totally hang out. Multiple times. Until you’re sick of us. Can’t wait.
  • Why, yes, that’s so nice of you! You can totally buy us a breakfast taco/BBQ/Shiner/pony. (On second thought, no ponies, please.)

IMG_0597[1]

S/V Mother Jones is a one-horse town

What still needs a-figuring:

  • Should he stay or should he go now? (Kemah) At 10 years old, he has never flown before and we’re not eager to try it out. And, because he’s a pit bull mix some airlines restrict the breed (due to their short noses). I, for one, think K has a beautiful long nose, which may become attached to a “lab mix” should we decide to fly him. But, given he’s in his autumn years and has a tendency to be sensitive to new things, I’d much prefer to drive or sail him home. ***update: K is coming home with us on the sailboat :)***
  • So, should we drive (through Mexico)? Or, can we hitch a ride with another sailor heading Stateside? Could we get him back the same way in October??? hmmmm . . . ***update: we’re sailing home***
  • Or, should K stay aboard, in his comfort zone, with an awesome dog+boat sitter keeping him company (and enjoying living rent-free in a slip in the Caribbean)? If you’re interested in entertaining this possibility, let us know. ***update: you missed your window on this, no one***

Oh, and then there’s us:

  • We won’t have a car, unless you lend us your spare (I can’t believe you have a spare car!). So, plan on us showing up on our bikes, a Car2Go or whomever we hitch with (“Thanks, Mr. *not* Serial Killer!)
  • We have an open invite to stay with a handful of close friends and fam. We will not be homeless – which is SO AWESOME. But, we sure don’t want to impose on anyone, and know there are weird sitches all around “Keep It Weird” town where folks need a house-sit, etc (I can’t believe you have a spare house!). We will be doing pre-production in South Austin (S. 1st & Mary  – our old stomping grounds!) and once the Fest starts we’ll be up North as in Capital “N” North. So, let us know if you’re one of those people with a conveniently-located spare house/garage apartment/RV (hey, don’t ask, don’t get, right?). 

So, any of y’all’s needin’ to make some deposits in the karma bank, here’s your chance to help out a few wayward sailors – there’s a yacht berth in the Caribbean waiting for you 🙂

See ya soon, ATX!!!

~D, L (& Mr. K?)

oh, I almost forgot: in terms of “what about after October?” Ha! That’s almost half-a-year away! We’ll let you know how that chapter starts when we settle on a direction for the draft. But, just in case it doesn’t involve vagabonding around the Caribbean on S/V Mother Jones, come visit us in Isla before we come home!

The grass is always greener?

Posted on by
6

It’s almost 1 year since we moved on the boat (and two years since we set out on a “3 month sabbatical” – plans change, eh?). It’s that time of year when folks are posting pics of family and friends gathering and reflections of the passing year. And, it’s got us thinking of all the things we miss about life on land and the things we love about life aboard.

So, here’s a quick ‘n dirty list of what we love aboard/what we miss about “home”:

  1. Organic, in-season fruits & veggies/the huge variety of produce available year-round (strawberries, apples!)
  2. Fruit & veg without pesticides/not worrying about whether produce in restaurants is “safe”
  3. Cheap, basic healthcare/specialized medicine (dermatology for skin cancer, etc)
  4. Sleeping outside in the breeze/air conditioning when there is no breeze
  5. Spending so much time together/spending time with life-long friends and family
  6. Adventure/stability
  7. Not having a work schedule/having an income
  8. Not ever having to wear shoes/wearing all kinds of cute shoes
  9. Wearing a bathing suit every day/wearing different kinds of clothes
  10. Tropical weather/Getting off mold watch
  11. Peace & Quiet
  12. Having time to cook delicious and nutritious meals/having someone else cook, wash the dishes and eating out!
  13. Moving our house/Not having to worry about our house moving! A host of interesting people from all over the world/seeing life-long friends & family!
  14. Self-sustainable resource management/unlimited fresh water and power
  15. Clean water from the rain/not worrying about dirty water
  16. /wearing my hair down
  17. /salads without slugs
  18. Simple pleasures/simple pleasures
  19. The *stars*, bioluminescence and being in so much nature all the time/Being protected from the elements
  20. The sense of self-sufficiency that comes from being ever-vigilant about your safety/Not having to drop everything and do boat projects or worry about sinking, dragging, collisions, reefs, other boats, sea-monsters, etc
  21. The humbling effect of leading a “weather permitting” lifestyle (aka the constant reminder that we are not in control, it’s not always healthy or appropriate to “make it happen” and much more pleasant to just surrender to things as they come)
  22. The slow pace
  23. /Nail polish! (Laurie)
  24. /Fresh water swimming! (Laurie)
  25. /Hot showers (Damon)
  26. /Making music with my buddies (Damon)
  27. /Spring rolls, cheeseburgers, BBQ, hot wings, & other comfort foods made by someone else 😉
  28. Barking at pelicans, dolphins, and other boaters/chasing squirrels (Mr. K)

I’m sure there’s more to add to this list and, perhaps like many of you, we have a fantasy of what it’d be like to be on the other side of the coin. But, in the event you were getting way too jealous of our yachting-in-the-Caribbean lifestyle we thought we’d share a little bit of our grass-is-always-greener thoughts with you.

L,D & Mr. K

Newly Salted: 11 months in

Posted on by
Reply

So, there’s this really, really cool couple of blogs managed by Liva of S/V Estrellita. The blogs, Interview with a Cruiser Project and Newly Salted, both feature interviews of those who have been cruising for some time and those of us who just started out. I found them to be tremendously helpful when we were still sitting at our desks dreaming and scheming of a way to become  . . . Cruisers.

Because these interviews were so helpful to me, and because we’re no longer sitting at our desks – (drumroll, please) we’ve become we’re everday becoming Cruisers, I thought we’d add our thoughts to the project.

Liva asks participants to self-publish our interviews and then re-formats and links back – how easy, peasy! I’m looking forward to seeing our interview up here when she has a break in her South Pacific sailing.

Until then, here goes something:

  • About Us

S/V Mother Jones hails from Austin, Texas and is Captained by Damon and Laurie Jones, with minimal support by our Chief Security Officer Kemah (our dog). We moved aboard in December of 2011 in Punta Gorda, Florida and sailed to Panama stopping in The Bahamas, Jamaica and Providencia. We have blogged about our travels overland and aboard at www.SoManyBeaches.com. We love hearing from other cruisers; so don’t be shy, drop us a line!

  • What (if anything) do you wish someone had told you before you started cruising –

D: I wish we had told ourselves to take a couple of navigation/sailing courses. Although I know now that, no matter what anyone teaches you, you (well, I) don’t really learn how to sail until you actually do it on YOUR boat. BUT, a “basics” of anv knowledge and sail trim physics would’ve been helpful…

L: We did a TON of research before we left, scouring blogs of other cruisers and basically soliciting any advice from anyone willing to share it. So, I’m not sure there were too many surprises. But, one piece of advice we got over and over and I’ll restate here was: GO NOW! We heard from a lot of old salts who said they or someone they were close to waited and waited to go and then they couldn’t due to health, financial or other reasons. They told us to go now and we’ll figure it out (financially) and so far that’s been true.

  • As you started cruising, what transitions did you find the most difficult?

L: In terms of being a cruising couple, learning how to sail together was challenging at first: we learned we deal with stress differently (he springs into action trying to figure out what can be done and I prefer to quietly think on it before acting and his action makes me more stressed), and we had different ideas of what makes a good sail, anchorage and social life. Navigating those new waters together takes time but we found slowing down, asking “why do you think that?”, “where do you want to anchor?” or “how do you want the day to go?” and then really listening to the answer has made a big difference towards being in sync.

L: Personally, I had a hard time transitioning with the distance from friends, family and making new friends – when everyone is a proverbial ship passing in the night. I love being a part of a community and D prefers his solitude. So, that means he’ll begrudgingly join me in meeting new cruisers, attending pot-lucks, etc and/or I’ll just go by myself while he hangs back. And, it means that as we look at going back out for the Season (and leaving our community in Bocas del Toro), I’ll be facing this challenge again.

D: Sleeping. On land, it’s easy to sleep through the night; you don’t wake up every few hours wondering if your house has wandered down the street or if someone else’s house is going to knock into ours if the wind changes. On the boat, I find myself waking up every couple of hours to close the hatch if it starts to rain, check our position and otherwise mind the boat.

  • What mistakes did you make as you started cruising?

Ha! We’ve made a few for sure! We’ve run aground a couple of times (luckily, we’ve been able to just get out and push our shallow-draft boat off a shoal). We sailed wing-on-wing in 10 foot seas (and then ripped our head sail). We’ve drug anchor because we anchored on a slope and then the winds changed. We were too optimistic about sailing and almost ran out of gas a couple of times. Yep, we’ve made a few.

  • What do you find the most exciting about your cruising life?

We love having the opportunity to spend so much time together. We love the challenge of learning new things (“what’s leech line, a weep hole, a Obida?”). We love being self-sufficient and spending so much time outdoors. We also love being part of an international community with so many different backgrounds and perspectives represented. And, of course, there’s all the exploring: from travelling a well-worn cruising path like Boo-Boo Hill in the Bahamas to finding the secret fish market or just a boat part, it’s always like a treasure hunt! Finally, there’s the striking physical landscapes of all the new places. My good friend who’s spent 16 years cruising says it best: “I love standing in my galley with my same old pots and pans and looking out on a whole new country!”.

  • What do you dislike about cruising that surprised you?

I’m amazed at how some can be so narrow-minded when commenting on other cultures and living amongst other cultures as expats. I understand how things can wear on you, but if you wanted it “they way it is in X”, stay there or go back!

  • What is something that you read or heard about cruising, that you didn’t find to be true?

While I had read a lot about other people’s budgets for cruising, I mistakenly thought we could out-cheap other cruisers.  I thought we could stay under or around $1,000 per month, because, you know, wind is FREE! But, of course, the wind isn’t always with you, parts are expensive and depending on where you go, provisioning and Zarpes can also add up.

  • What is something that you read or heard about cruising, that you found particularly accurate?

We have definitely found it to be true that there are always boat projects; it’s like painting the Golden Gate Bridge: once you’re down to the bottom of the list, start again at the top!  I’ve also found the cruising community to be amazing. Regardless of who you are, how much money you make, your politics, race or religion, if you are in a jam, another cruiser WILL help you out.  A couple of quick things, too: The Bahamas is expensive, everybody has an opinion and don’t worry about food so much – they’ll have it there.

  • Is there something you wish you had bought or installed before starting out?

We wish we had an SSB for sure. We had an incident hundreds of miles from shore and only had a SPOT and VHF. Luckily, we were able to get someone on the VHF three hours into our ordeal that could relay to the Coast Guard. But, we’d love to have the added safety of the SSB for emergencies and for weather forecasting.

Also, given that Damon is a working electronic musician and I a writer, we’ve found our battery bank to be limiting to powering our equipment. We run the genny from time to time, wait for sunny days or go ashore to use computers.

Another cruising couple also told us they heard from others cruising the Tropics that they couldn’t have enough fans. We’ve added a couple here and there over the last year and would definitely second this recommendation.

Finally, a wish list item that hasn’t proved a deal-breaker yet is a windlass. We *are* the windlass on S/V Mother Jones. Luckily, because of the grounds we’re cruising and because we have a shallow draft boat, we rarely have a problem pulling up anchor. But, at 4lbs a foot (280lbs) anchoring in more than 20 feet can get difficult to pull up, especially if there is any wind.

  • What piece(s) of gear would you leave on the dock next time? Why?

Clothes, books and leather; we brought too much of all of it and in the Tropics, everything leather has molded.

  • What are your plans now?

If they do not include cruising, tell us why. This Season we’re headed to the San Blas, then up the Western Caribbean Coast (Providencia, the Bay Islands of Honduras, the Rio Dulce, Belize and Mexico). And, we’re excited!

  • What question do you wish I would have asked you besides the ones I’ve asked you and how would you answer it?

Having a dog aboard presents both pluses and minuses: we never worry about security, but have limited independence from the boat and in places we can cruise. Several folks have wondered about the strange looking PVC lined mat we have at the bottom of our swim step: it’s Kemah’s swim step allowing him to easily enter and exit the boat without our assistance. More info about our homemade, $40, swim step can be found here.

**Update: Mother Jones has officially become “Newly Salted”! You can read this and other Newly Salted interviews here.**

The “plan”

Posted on by
Reply

During our recent hibernation, D and I had a lot of time to reconnect and focus on what we want for the next 6 months/couple years/lifetime. We call this “dreaming and scheming”, it’s super-fun and we highly recommend it.

You may remember the “We did it, now what?” post back in June referring to our goal of sailing to Panama and then “figuring it out”. Well, we’ve done some figuring and here’s the plan for next Season (hold please on any impending “Life Plan”).

Headline: Keep Cruising

Byline: San Blas – Isla Mujeres via Western Caribbean

That’s right, we’re headed out again into the great blue yonder. Some of y’all may have thought (because we told you) that we were likely to settle here in Bocas and open a small movie theater. You may have even seen our architectural and business plans or even been on a real estate tour of Bocas with us – because all of that happened.

But, we, being cruisers, with a full cruising kitty and a BOAT, have decided to make a wild, 180 and use both to keep exploring – we can always settle down “some day”, right?

So, here’s the rough plan for this Season’s adventures:

  • Mid-November: make our way down to the San Blas via our old stopping grounds of Portobelo buddy-boating with our good friends Jess and James aboard S/V Adamastor
  • December-mid January: pick up D’s brother Dylan in the San Blas and head back up to beautiful Providencia from Portobelo (a much better angle than from Bocas but it means that when we leave in a couple weeks, we likely won’t see our Bocas friends for a looooong time, which is a real bummer!)
  • February: From Portobelo, we’ll do a long stretch over pirate-infested waters to the Bay Islands off Honduras and then duck into the Rio Dulce, Guatemala. Fun times!
  • March: We’re likely to spend a month or so on the Rio and travelling overland to explore a lot of Guatemala, like Tikal, Semuc Champey and hopefully hit the amazing Easter celebrations in Antigua. This will require us leaving the boat in a marina with a dog sitter, so if you’ve ever wanted a free stay on a yacht in Central America, now’s your chance!
  • April: Weave our way north through the reefs of Belize on our way to Isla Mujeres, Mexico. D and I spent our honeymoon in Belize and we’re looking forward to getting back, especially to Caye Caulker. And, D traveled the Yucatan extensively before we met, so I’m excited for him to show me around!
  • Then???
We figure by the time we’re in Isla, we can choose whether we’re ready to head back to Panama and start again on Cinema Toro or head back to Austin for life on land again. Or, maybe we’ll flip another 180 and do something entirely different!
For those who love following along, in maps (as much as I do), you’re in luck! Here’s a link to a map:


View 2013 Season Plans in a larger map

Anywho, that’s the plan (for now). Just in case you’re keeping track 🙂
See y’all out there on the water!
L, D & Mr. K
ps. If you have any experience sailing these legs or visiting these anchorages, please don’t be shy and let us know what you loved and what you didn’t, willya?

 

 

WaSUP!!!!

Posted on by
3

WassssSUP!?!

Hey everybody!

We’re alive!!!! And, by “we”, I mean Mr. K, D and moi all together on the boat – yeah!

I feel a bit bad about not writing for sooooo long, but here’s the deal: only having 2 hands on the boat, instead of 4, is hard work, y’all! So, now that D’s back and we’re done hibernating with each other, I’m ready to tell some tales.

In fact, I’ve been toying with the idea of catching up in a BIG way: 30 posts in 30 days; do you think I can do it???

(you saying: “Yes, of course, do it!”)

Thanks! You’re awesome for believing in me and wanting to hear what’s up. I’ve got some awesome things to share and am wondering, too, about anything you’re interested to know. So, let me know “what’s SUP?” and I’ll whip something out for you.

I’m so looking forward to reconnecting with you, internetz, and appreciate you sharing this experience with us.

xo,

L, D and Mr. K

ps. In case you’re wondering “what SUP?” with all my bad puns, it’s because D surprised me with my very own board!!! Stay tuned for more info how it goes on my new ride . . . swoon.