Spring Updates

Paula's Posts

Embarrassing but TRUE! We haven't posted since Scott returned from the Abacos at the end of April. First of all, I was raised in the 1960's and my Mama taught me not to talk "just to hear my head rattle" and I figure that applies to blogs as well. We have been BUSY back on land. We are aggressively trying to sell our home in Indiana. Yard, house and property all needed some TLC and now that Scott is home we have been working on it. I must say the place is looking great, so now all we need is a buyer ready for "life on the lake". Big KUDOS to Neal V, LaDonna, Kristen and Lavera for all their hard work!

Family updates:
     Scott was home June 1 to celebrate his birthday. Friends from OKC came to visit and we had an outstandingly great time at the lake. On Scott's birthday I was chauffeur to our group of friends as we made our way on a marathon "pub crawl". We all had a wonderful time.

     After graduating from Columbia University in NYC last year, Catherine has now completed one year of graduate school at Fordham University. She will be starting a full time teaching position in Greenwich,CT while completing her final year of graduate school. I am very proud of her!  She💗 NY!
     Alex spent the past 6 months training for his new career in the US Army. He graduated with the Army Corps of Engineers. It was a proud moment for him (and us)! He then went directly to Ft Benning GA for Airborne Training School. He graduated with 'flying colors' (pun intended) and Scott got to pin Alex's newly earned wings on him! Well done! Alex will be a member of the 82nd Airborne stationed at Ft Bragg, NC.
My Mom, currently living in OKC, will celebrate another wonderful, healthy and happy year as her birthday arrives July 14. No ages published! Haha!

Boat updates:
Tabula Rasa is back at Sunset Bay Marina in Stuart, FL having some more upgrades and repairs. I compare boat projects and land projects like this...your land house may need a new A/C filter, your water heater may need some attention and your deck may have some signs of wear and tear. On land, these tasks can be postponed and your house will not sink into the ground or be completely unlivable. However, a boat task or maintenance item left unchecked could be disastrous! Thus the constant work list to maintain our beloved TR. We will be returning to Stuart in July to check on her progress. 


Website updates:
After a very busy weekend on the computer, Scott and I have successfully updated, amended and improved our entire website. Especially check out the new Tiki Bar Reviews!

Work updates:
My mother also taught me, "If you don't have anything nice to say, say nothing at all!" If the following have any meaning to you then God Help You because you, too, are in the health care field...
ACA,CMS,CAQH,CVO,NPDB,NBME,DEA,BLS,ACLS,PALS,CME,RIE,LEAN...
and this is only the beginning...

On this note, I think I will wish all my readers good health, fair weather and much happiness. I'll excuse myself to enjoy the only abbreviation I will soon need to know.
G/Tx (gin and tonic on the rocks!) 

Scott Speaks

Here I am doing my April post in late June. I think I have outdone myself this time!!! But, wait no Paula post!?!?!? Can it be? It looks like I am going to scoop her.

I have now posted all of the Abaco Tiki Bar reviews. In addition, I have updated the Indiana Sportsman Tiki Bar review as a result of my return to Indiana. All Tiki Bar reviews are now listed on the site by location (Abaco, Mexico, Indiana, etc.) so one does not need to plow through old information. Bottom line is I have not yet found the perfect Tiki Bar and therefore must continue my search. As they say "It is a tough job, but someone has to do it" and I am just the man for the job...

April Hmmm.... I think I can remember it? Well what I can not remember I will make up.

April had some rough weather and many days of turbulent Gulf Stream conditions. I ended up delaying my crossing by a little over two weeks as a result of the weather. The Gulf Stream experienced 9 to 11 foot seas and although the boat is very capable of those conditions I thought "Why"? I belong to the cruisers school of thought that there is no set schedule,  only weather windows. As a result, when we crossed, the water was as rough as bathtub water the entire trip. John Hoffman from Nordhavn joined me as Paula's work schedule was too rigid to allow for such flexibility. It was sunny all the way with perfect temperatures. So much sunshine that John and I got toasted from the sun after the first day without realizing it. We spent one night on hook in the north end of the Bahamas with no land in site. That evening there was not a cloud or light in sight. Nothing but a million stars which was absolutely magnificent. We grilled out some fresh fish and drank cold Sands Light beer.  Thank you John for allowing me to drink up your stash of Sands Light. We were up to the wee morning hours. Truly living the dream!

The next morning we were up at 5:30 am and continued the journey. The water in the Bahamas is quite shallow from inches to maybe 30' in very rare instances. When the water is shallow and there is a sandy bottom the water is bright aqua color. On our return journey as we left the Bahamas we went from depths of 30 to 800+ feet in a matter of minutes. As a result the ocean goes from aqua to royal blue immediately. It is quite a site. The trip took two long days and I enjoyed every minute. We crossed a lot of traffic as we headed to Stuart from large freighters to  cruise ships. After we entered the St. Lucie Inlet and proceeded up the St. Lucie River we encountered very heavy traffic as it was a Sunday. During the process we had this boat come up beside us and the Captain yelled, "We are Dreamers and we will be joining you soon!" while the crew took pictures.   Pretty cool! I hope they do join us soon. For those who do not know who "Dreamers" are, there is a website dedicated to people from all over the world who are dreaming of owning a Nordhavn and traveling the world.  You, too, can be a Dreamer by JOINING HERE.


After my return to Sunset Bay Marina in Stuart, Florida I cleaned up and secured the boat. I had a week to complete this task and proceed to pick up Paula to go to Fort Leonard Wood to see her son, Alex, graduate from Army Boot camp. He graduated as a Combat Engineer with the Corps Of Engineers. He has matured soooo much. We were all very proud. Four weeks later we traveled to Fort Benning where her son graduated Airborne School. I had the honor of pinning his wings on him and also on a fellow Marine Recon Ranger. I have never been so honored. Alex is now headed to Fort Bragg where he is assigned to the 82nd Airborne.


Since then I have been up in Indiana at our house on Lake Freeman. It has been a sentence of forced labor since I have been back. De-winterizing everything and repairing everything affected by the harsh winter. Funny, I do not remember it being a bad winter in Marsh Harbor!?!?


The Indiana house is now for sale and my immediate home projects are coming to a close. Next week Paula and I are headed to the boat for 9 days. I will be trading home projects for boat projects. WTF? Whatever happened to that retirement rocking chair I heard about?


As a result of the 100 plus fellow cruisers/sailors I met during my 3.5 months in Abaco who without exception said, "Go to the Exumas before the Caribbean",  we have definitely decided to go to the Exumas next cruising season.


This concludes my April, May, and June Blogs. And for the record, that means I have blogged before Paula the last 3 months in a row.  :)