Thursday May 24, 2012

Good Lord will this boat project EVER be done???? The more we scrape and sand the more places we find that have to be replaced due to rot and water damage. The arthritis in my hips is killing me, and my hands and arms just ACHE! Looks like this is gonna be a bigger job than we thought. Oh well... with each repair we are one step closer to getting the boat done and on the market. While Ben tore apart the back deck I finished the hand sanding around the windows and deck rails.

Once every thing is sanded down we will start on varnishing the wood and putting down the new non-skid deck coating..... IF we ever get to that point. It feels overwhelming because there is so much to do. I think once I actually start to see the finished product it will feel like we are accomplishing something. I am sooooo looking forward to this weekend. I can hardly hold it in... not telling Ben his sister and brother-in-law will be joining us for the Mariners game. Is it Saturday yet????

Guess I better get started on today's chores..... I keep hoping I will wake up one morning and all the work will be done......  *sigh*

Monday May 21, 2012

Rain, Rain, Rain........ We have had such a run of great weather I had almost forgotten we lived in the rainy northwest! Oh well, can't have blue Sky's everyday.... We had a great weekend. aka.. no working on the boat. LOL. My big brother Bob and his wife Lee drove up Saturday afternoon and spent the night on the boat with us. We enjoyed a great BBQ on the deck, a few beers and great company. I don't think Lee knew what she was getting into when she agreed to spend the night on the boat. We have two double beds in the aft cabin, both are partially under the outer walkway so you kinda have to sleep under a shelf, poor Lee is like me, a little claustrophobic.... so Bob had to sleep under the 'ledge'. Then there is the wonderful smell of the diesel.... and the oder of the toilet.... I LOVE having company but I am embarrassed by the shape/smell of our boat. Lee and Bob were troopers. They survived the night and after a breakfast of biscuits and gravy (of course), they headed back home. Thanks for visiting, I love you both and admire your courage!
Saturday is Ben's birthday, daughter Crystal sent him Mariners tickets for the Saturday game. He doesn't know it but his sister Karey and brother-in-law Mike are driving over from Idaho to go to the game with us. I am so excited! I can't wait to see them. I know nothing about baseball but I'm so excited about going to the game. Thanks Crystal, what a great gift! And thanks Mike and Karey for spending your Memorial Day with us, it will be a wonderful surprise for Ben and I am so excited to see you both!
Today we begin AGAIN working on the boat, all the scraping is done on the wood, we just have to do the finish sanding and then the varnish. I think today we are going to start working on the decks, remove the old cracked paint and get it ready for a new coat of non-skid. Ben wants to wait until the weather turns again before we start tearing apart the bedroom and remove that DAMN diesel tank and replacing the floor. I just keep thinking that with every day of work we are getting closer to putting the boat on the market and selling it. At the very least.... even if it doesn't sell right away I will have a CLEAN, boat to live in... one that I can actually go BOATING IN!

Thursday May 17, 2012

Every month I attend a WIC, (Woman's Interclub Council) meeting at a different Yacht Club. This month the WIC luncheon was held at Olympia Yacht Club and the 'theme' was Alice through the looking glass, a Mad Hatter Tea Party. All the guests were encouraged to make a hat for the occasion. My hat won a prize (a pretty little cup & saucer) for Best Hat! I am a creative genius! Now why can't I make any money doing what I love!..... HUH!... WHY!... I guess that would just be to easy.  ** sigh**

I drove to Olympia ALL BY MYSELF, my first trip on I-5 alone and driving through Tacoma... I was very brave and only took the wrong off ramp once and was able to get back on the freeway with out freaking out TOO bad! LOL. When I got home Ben was slaving away on the boat. We are in the process of completely re-doing the boat. Not only is Ben going to repair that FREAKING leaking Diesel tank but we are stripping ALL the wood trim (and DAMN there is alot of wood) so we can put a new coat of varnish on the trim. Once the trim is all scraped and sanded we will put around5 or 6 coats of varnish on all the outside wooden trim. THEN Ben will pull the diesel tank and repair or replace it. After that it's time to touch up the exterior white paint.... and it's a BIG boat, then we will put down the light blue non-skid coating on all the horizontal decks. Once THAT is done... holy crap I'm tired already.... We are putting new material in the interior cabin ceiling, and the final step is new carpet throughout. THEN..... wait for it........

We are gonna put the boat on the market and SELL IT! Then????? Well, I guess we will have to see. We have been working our asses off and every time I get tired and my arms ache... I just thing of how nice it will be to get outta this boat!