We're Back in Dunedin FL

January 19, 2014

Sunset at Marker1 Marina in Dunedin FL

Hi all!  We'll, as said in subject line, we're baackkkkkkkk! Booked to fly back to Tampa on Wednesday, January 15th, Clay and I were delivered to Lambert Field by brother Walter for our late-morning flight to Tampa. It seems that Clay's fishing pole did not want to come along, being left behind, first at the security checkpoint in St. Louis, then again on the Super Shuttle, our transport from Tampa airport to Dunedin. We won't be forced into noodling, but had to pay $20 for Super Shuttle to deliver the fishing pole to Marker 1 Marina a day later. Darn! Not the way I care to spend money!

The Marker 1 Marina staff, upon our arrival, was most anxious to return to us our recovered bikes. They were as excited as we to have found the 'stolen' bikes ('stolen' by the weekend security guard at the marina who mistakenly almost dismissed them as trash--does that help to define the quality of said bikes?). Clay was on wavelength of oiling the bikes, so became focused on such to the exclusion of most all else. The day got later, and the grocery run didn't happen, but God was on our side when I discovered a frozen (unmarked) tub of shrimp creole in the freezer for dinner. We ate well then slept well despite the galeforce winds and torrential rainfall overnight. So much for meticulously oiling the bikes!

We spent time Wednesday and Thursday reacquainting ourselves with the boat--the galley and layout of dishes/pot/pans/etc, storage, whereabouts of clothing, etc. Amazing that, in a month's time, you quickly forget details of where things are kept! Back into the swing of things pretty quickly though, we walked to the local Publix (grocery store) mid-morning Thursday, wheeling along with us the marina dock cart (I guess that has been done before, but we felt kinda silly dragging behind us a big, black, boxy cart on 2 wheels for the 10 minute walk to the store and 'home' again). $150 later (we'd left the boat pretty well depleted when we left mid-December), we were well supplied with grocery items for the days ahead.

We thought we'd left cold weather behind for the sunny skies of Florida. Well, yep on the sunny skies, but nope on the cold left behind. We've been low-50's since our arrival, with winds upwards of 15-20 mph, and gusts stronger than that. Has not been conducive to walking nor boating. I reinforced to Clay just today that boating is a warm-weather sport to which he agreed! I know it's not as cold as most of you are experiencing and certainly no snow. 

Thursday was a day of grocery shopping and organizing, with a bit of cleaning and dusting thrown in. By supper time, my plans to fix a nice dinner were replaced by a quick bacon-and-egg supper for Clay and a salad and some sushi for me (Publix makes sushi fresh daily, so we thought we'd give it a try. Yum!)

Clay has orchestrated communication with many friends from days gone by, both his and mine. So, on Friday, I connected with friend Janis Schlueter Freeman who was receptive to a 'reunion' short cruise and dinner. Fun! She got a taste of living aboard in 43' of space total. She also got a taste of Clay's driving skills after a month layoff. Hmmm, both 'awkward' moments (is that kind?) came in conjunction with the autopilot. Of course, I had to call sister Sus and tell her she was misbehaving (I will remind you that Clay named the autopilot 'Susan' so that she'd be accompanying us on this journey/adventure.)

Upon our arrival back at Marker 1 Marina following our short cruise, we three met friends of Janis' at Kelly's (restaurant) in Dunedin for an evening of friends and fellowship. Was fun expanding our repertoire of acquaintances.  Thanks, Janis, for sharing your friends with us! And, Kelly's was a fun spot! 

I should report that workmen showed up Friday on short notice to work on the heater/ac system and on the boat's bottom (checking for growth of both plant and animal variety). The diver did little to disrupt our day, but I still need to work on my patience and flexibility when I found my soon-to-take shower interrupted by the heater fella and his compadre dismantling my closet and dressing area. Bummer. (NOTE: I have now taken up knitting again as I find it not only a time-filler, but a way to alleviate stress. I will probably make LOTS MORE dish cloths in the days ahead!)

Today I've made numerous trips between the boat and the marina laundromat (1 washer and 1 dryer can make laundry an all-day affair!) And, Clay is busy vacuuming and dusting the interior (it's his boat I will remind you), opting for inside work as opposed to his original plan of washing the boat's exterior today! That tells you it's pretty chilly and pretty windy today--but SUN! Our plans to take the open-air Jolley Trolley to Tarpon Springs for dinner and a bit of soap/sponge shopping have been delayed until tomorrow; that should give you a hint as to the outside temperature and enjoyability of being outside today!

We reconnected today in the laundryroom with Looper friends Cathy and Gary (After Taxes) who were departing today for a 20-mile trip down the coast to St. Petersburg. It was a fun reunion, emphasizing the fact that yes, we will reconnect with some of our Looper friends made along the way thus far! 

Clearwater Marina and bridge to the beach

That's all for now. I am soon to start dinner, which was the menu planned for Thursday which hasn't happened yet, but will.  I told Clay earlier today that doing laundry is fun, cooking is work. He asked when cooking became work; I told him when it stopped being fun! Made sense to me. Maybe it's the tiny galley? Or the frig items that freeze unexpectedly? Or having to juggle fewer available pots and pans and minimal utensils? Or maybe it's just getting older and having done it for years?

Love to you all! We miss you already, but are glad to have a way to stay connected! Don't forget we have email and cell phones (for calling and texting).