Our Dania Beach Stay, Part 2, April 9-20, 2014

April 9 -20, 2014

Aunt Shirley and Uncle Woody (Woody is Mary Alice's brother)

Arriving in Ft. Lauderdale Tuesday evening, Clay and I were met by Woody and Shirley who welcomed us back to the sunny South after our 2-week absence in LAMO. We spent Tuesday eve thru Saturday morning in their home sharing some quality time before our departure north up the coastline of Florida. Clay spent time repotting a basil plant which seems to dislike salt spray; third time is said to be the charm, but it's not looking too good for this latest attempt either. The basil joined the rosemary in the hanging basket...the rosemary being the only herb to have survived since our August departure...hardy little dude! Clay also spent considerable time spray painting his bike with rust inhibitor, hoping to eliminate the staining on the boat deck beneath the bike's perch. If successful, my bike will get a dose as well. Consoling is the fact that they couldn't look any worse after his paint job.

Saturday dawned with a host of last-minute projects prior to our boarding SaSea Sally that afternoon. We treated Woody and Shirley to lunch at Panera, interrupting errands to Bass Pro, West Marine, Wal-Mart and Publix. We spent Saturday eve and most of Sunday reacquainting and organizing onboard, then I was surprised by another two overnights at Woodwards' where I nursed a cold (darn!) while Clay helped Woody with miscellaneous projects around the house. 

The final eve of our Woodward stay I played Julia Childs and, as Shirley remarked, gave her a 'cooking lesson' on crock pot cooking, preparing my Balsamic Chicken recipe for our dinner. I also tried to be supportive from afar, lending a listening ear as sister Sus returned home from morning surgery to repair her rotator cuff and biceps tendon.

Tuesday we hugged Woody and Shirley farewell, boarded the boat at Dania Beach and looked toward a late-week depature from Dania Beach. But Mother Nature aborted our departure plans with wave after wave of rain during which time we filled our hours/days with normal life activities: doing laundry, paying bills, authoring emails, etc. Clay worked to rust-proof my bike and supervised the boat detailers who were completing the wash, wax and detail job between raindrops. I also kept in frequent contact with Sus, regretting that I couldn't be two places at once. I guess it's nice to be needed.

Saturday brought thunder, lightning and a tornado alert to the Dania Beach area. Later morning, we accepted a ride from Ed for Clay to exchange a dinghy cover at West Marine and for me to restock a few grocery items at Publix. Thanks, Ed!

Determining as perfect a fit as possible outside of a custom-made dinghy cover and groceries stowed, Clay and I decided to take the bikes for a ride as skies cleared. Sue had highlighted a boardwalk bordering the beach for biking and jogging, but we'd never had opportunity to ride there. I mounted my bike, but the wheels wouldn't turn! Clay spied a bent rim on the front, probably the result of his falling against it during a deck dismount from the boat. That then gave him another project...to locate a bike repair facility along our upcoming route (so glad Clay likes a challenge); we'd planned to leave Easter Sunday afternoon heading north.

We determined our departure time from Dania Beach Marina by studying the tides for Easter Sunday; the low fixed bridge at the harbor entrance is a nuisance which will unfortunately never allow the boating business for which this marina is preparing. Low tide being 7:30'ish p.m., Clay determined our fit to be sometime after 4:30 p.m. with mast down. With pumpout long overdue, our first stop would be Harbour Towne Marina where we could get help putting the mast up as well. With mast in lowered position, our electronics are 'dead in the water.' And, with full holding tanks...well, you get the idea.

Easter Sunday we attended church with Ed and Sue at the Trinity Lutheran Church Sue plans to join when they permanently settle in the Ft. Lauderdale area. It was fun to get dressed up to the extent our wardrobes allow 'dressing up' and to attend a church with a large and welcoming congregation, vocal and bell choirs, and a good Easter message. I must admit 2014 Easter was not our traditional holiday spent with family and close friends, but we celebrated nonetheless in atypical fashion, praising the Lord for His Risen Son. 

I planned to grill Easter dinner salmon after anchoring which would come after our stop at Harbour Towne which would follow our 4:30 p.m., give or take, departure from Dania Beach. I was starting to envision our evening schedule which was gonna play out kinda like flying in a 4-seater Cessna (airplane) after take-off when young John would announce he needed to go to the bathroom; you don't just stop, dash in and use the bathroom. That should give you a big hint as to how the sunset hours played out aboard SaSea Sally on Easter Sunday!