Boat Work Update

It's been a while since I updated you on the boat progress. Wow, almost 2 months. We've definitely gotten things done since then.

We have done some cleaning, then a little more cleaning, followed up by more cleaning still. I lived on the boat for two years, so I managed to clutter up the place with a ton of stuff. Really, most of it was just junk. With Trevor's amazing help and support (and the occasional look of "do you really need this?"), we managed to get everything off that I'd dragged on board. I wonder how I ever managed to fit so much on there! Then I remember how little room I had, and it makes sense. So the boat is clean! Huge accomplishment!

Also, we have new settee cushions. The settees are the couch-like seats that run along the sides in the cabin, for you non-boaty folks. The old cushions were the originals, and they did not look or feel good after 30+ years on the boat. So we had new ones made (Mattress Affair in Hixson = very nice people and excellent custom work). And my awesomely amazing mom was kind enough to make covers for them! They look fantastic. One of these days I'll figure out how to do pictures on the blog, and you'll actually get to see the boat.

I've done lots of work in my time off (currently unemployed), but I can't even think of what most of it has been. I installed new cabin lights inside. The old ones were quite ugly. The new ones are really plain, but it beats the heck out of ugly! And they're supposed to be a little more energy efficient, so good news for the batteries. New CD player is installed. Note: I don't recommend Dual brand; the wiring is off-kilter with them. We had to do some unnatural wiring just to get the darn thing to work, and then it drained the batteries. So a couple of days ago, I installed a switch to the radio so we could turn it completely off an not kill our only power source.

And for today's awesome accomplishment, we installed a bimini top! I managed to find one online for less than $200 with free shipping. Bargain shopping is one of my strong points. It's definitely a 2-person job to get that thing put on. I managed to put it together on my own the other day, but Trevor had to come to the rescue for the actual installation. So now we have shade in the cockpit! Pretty excited about that one. It's another job I've been meaning to do since I bought the boat almost 4 years ago (like new interior lights).

So basically, we've gotten numerous things done. Some are cool to look at, none of them are interesting to read about. Once we're under way, maybe the blogs will be more interesting.

Things in progress:
Main sail is in the shop being repaired. We probably need a new one, but it's $1200 versus $100 for repairs. We'll just see how it holds up.
V-berth mattress is ordered. Memory foam! Should be here in the next week or two.
Still need to finish up some wiring. Seems like there's always something else to wire. I'm getting good at it.
Fixing the bottom step inside. It's really unstable. We haven't broken anything yet, but we're bound to if we don't shore that thing up.
Bathroom door. The old one literally fell to pieces. 30 years is the limit on whatever glue held it together. I had a shoddy curtain hanging, but Trevor wants real privacy. What a diva. ;oP
Lots of (hopefully) little things to be done. And getting things back on the boat in an organized way will be the biggest task. Good thing the First Mate is so good at organizing. Captain? Not so much.

I'll update before 2 months next time. Captain's word.