Gra'inne is going back to Maine!

We had quite a surprise yesterday afternoon.  Our old sailboat showed up in the marina here and we went aboard and had a great visit with the new owner and his family.  I'm going down to Fort Myers on Saturday to go over boat systems and visit.

More later

Bad day like none other

I've been working on an Island Packet this summer and had completed electronics upgrades and finishing up some interior finish work.  I noticed that 3 USB chargers had failed and didn't think much about it - got them all replaced.  Then a week or so later I noticed that the battery charger was dead, curious but still no alarms went off.  Replaced it and everything was fine.  Next, noticed that the wind indicator was no longer on the mast but I've been busy so still no alarms.  Then the owner was onboard over night and indicated that the reefer was tripping the breaker - took a look the next day and alarm sounded.  Compressor was dead which was strange as we had used the unit when we moved the boat from Dry Storage to the Marina in July.

Thorough check of all system and wiring indicated a mess - nearly everything electronic/electrical on the boat was dead.

I went up the mast the other day to reinstall a new wind instrument and remove what was left of the VHF antenna and masthead tricolor and the damage was obvious.

Autopilot, plotter, instruments, radar, antenna switchers, engine electronics, alternator regulator, all toast!

Hope your day is better!

Lewis Agility Video

We took Lewis to practice agility on 9/16 and was able to capture this video.  He does really well when it is just us in the session!

Lewis does Agility Practice 

Land clearing

We were able to get the crew in to remove the Cedar trees that we wanted cleared on Saturday.  They started at 8:00 and by 3:30 they were finished.  We were amazed at the look of the lot when they were finished.

I called the Fire Dept to see if I needed a burn permit and they said no, the burn ban has been lifted (plenty of rain lately), told me to let the Sheriff's Dept know just in case.  So I did that yesterday and picked up the supplies I needed and set out this morning to get rid of the brush.

I eventually set fire to three different areas along the edge of the brush pile.  I used kerosene and newspaper and with the wind from the right direction at about 10mph things progressed nicely.  This photo shows the brush pile after the second fire was started.

By 12:30 most of the brush was gone, stumps were nearly gone and smoldering, and smoke had died down quite a bit.  Plan to go over about 6:00 this evening and see what's left.

546 Estates Drive

We spent the day on our property yesterday marking tress for removal and looking at the wildlife and just checking things out.

Lewis was every alert for any threats to his family.

Then chasing down anything that might get to close.

Lesley is out at the Agriculture extension office and running errands.  I'm taking it easy today!

New take on Texas!

We've been in Kerrville for almost a week now and are enjoying our stay at the Windy Hill Ranch Guest House.  Nice folks (one is in the hospital), lots of new sights and smells for Lewis, and we are getting things done for our move here next year.

One of the first things we noticed this year is that the Horses and Cattle have changed!

Horses!

Cows!!

Looking for the ranch hands now?

Reefer Rebuild

I just finished fabricating the new top for the fridge/freezer.  This final piece is actually 2 pieces so that I can get them into the compartment, made up of FRP liner, 1/4"ply and 1" of polyiso insulation.  The new lights and wiring are visible here.

The light in the lower left will be used for the freezer compartment and the light near the middle is for the fridge.  Wiring pigtails will run out the back of the box along with the evaporator plate tubing, thermostat cables and spillover fan wiring.

We are leaving the area for several weeks and I'll continue on this project when I return.