Run, don't Walk.

5/10/2009 ...
I wanted to reflect on how, in the effort to slow life down a little, it has accelerated as our search for a 'routine' continues.
We moved to the new RV Park some weeks ago and for the most part it has worked out quite well. We've enjoyed watching the boats, including many very large and expensive yachts, motoring up and down the canals and the river within our view. The famous "Jungle Queen" tour boat makes it's U-Turn right at the end of our dock thrice a day and we get a kick out of people watching and knowing what's happening on the tour ("Hello Mr. Johnson!"). The campsite itself is nice, albeit not too level and prone to collecting large puddles of water right around where we have to park the car. The staff has been very cordialand we've only run onto one sticking point ... one that will cause us to need to move. That'd be money ...
We've decided that we would like to stay 'north' for the summer season. Primarily it is for the hurricane possibility. Fort Lauderdale, inland that is, enjoys a reputation as a 'hurricane hole' for boaters who come up the New River. We've looked at several docks and settled in on a couple of possibilities. The very best of our world would be to stay camped at our current location (Yacht Haven Marina and RV Park) and put the boat right out our back window but it seems we are unable to come to an agreement with the park staff on how that might work. Our RV is parked right along side an empty dock, but apparently that dock is only for 'large' yachts and at 28 feet our boat would be put over at "G" dock. We would enjoy a special discounted rate for dockage as we are residents and it all sounds good; except that the water at "G" dock is only 4 feet deep at high tide and we need 4 feet 8 inches or we'll be touching the dirt. So, we asked if there was any way we could bring the boat to the 'big-boys' docks and even though it is the slow season, and even thought there are only a handful of RVs parked here, they don't want us to bring the boat over, and if we could we would have to pay the premium rate per-foot with a minimum of 30 feet charged. Sigh ...
We approached the subject on three occasions and cannot reach an agreement so we will be moving on... The boat will go to a city Marina on the New River and we will move to a much newer and better equipped RV park for a little less money. It'll all work out for the best, and the access to I-95 is even better than it is here so our commute time to work will be knocked off a bit. Still... I liked the idea that we might look at our boat from the RV's window, but it was not to be. Maybe we will try again in a couple of months and see if they are any hungrier for business.

We've been waiting for a funds transfer so that we can actually pay for the sailboat, and it appears to have been just the breather we needed to get our ducks in order to receive her. We needed to talk about finding a good dock space and that meant calling and visiting several places all over the area. We needed to line up insurance and figure out what we need to dock and protect the boat through the summer months. Oh, and we need to do some study on the waterways as well.
Everything appears to be in order and we will pick her up and sail her to the new dock on Monday the 11th. We've done some shopping and have fresh charts and will be packing a picnic lunch. Should be fun!

On a personal note I've been through a few 'tests' lately and all is well. It's not been fun but well worth the peace of mind to find out that the blood is still red and the systems still work like they were designed. We will now happily wait until the time to do it all again rolls around. Oh the joys of aging gracefully :)

Yahoo! Things are spinning by rather quickly, but we're on a good tack.